Is This Real?
by kennedy8226
Summary: Rated M for a reason! HG/SS marriage law. Starts light and turns very dark. Rape, torture, strong language and explicit scenes slightly AU. Hermione is in her seventh year when a new marriage law is passed and she is sucked into it. How can she marry with only deatheaters as her options? Does not have a happy ending until the sequel. Please R&R! Everything is JKR's. Complete
1. Chapter 1

**Is This Real?**

Chapter One

Hermione tapped the end of her quill against her cheek as she thought out a plan for her History of Magic essay. It wasn't due for two weeks, but one could never get work done too early, right? The dim light that lit the table she was sitting at was the only one in the library, casting eerie shadows across the walls and floor. She wasn't supposed to be out this late past curfew, but she was an insomniac so she wanted to busy herself as much as possible. Maybe if she could wear herself out she could sleep for a few hours before she had to get up again for school. She dipped the end of her quill into the bottle of ink beside her paper and started to write in small, neat handwriting her essay on "The Goblin Wars of the Early Twelfth Century and Its Effect on Society."

When she had gotten to the end of the scroll, she looked up wearily to see the library was starting to lighten. Dawn had approached in what seemed like minutes. She rolled her scroll up and capped her ink then made her way up to her bed, which she would have to leave again in a half hour.

SS/HG

Hermione yawned her way through classes until she finally collapsed onto her bed in a heap of exhaustion. Several seconds later, the dorm room door flew open and banged into the wall beside it announcing the return of her noisy dorm mates. Hermione groaned and covered her head with a pillow, trying to block out their obnoxious chatter. Her bed bowed down on her right side and Hermione looked at Ginny, annoyed, who had sat beside her.

Ginny grinned down at her. "I didn't see you come in last night."

"I was in the library and didn't get in until six." Hermione growled.

"You should really get some rest. Sleep is important you know."

Hermione wanted to yell that she had been trying to, but decided Ginny was just trying to be friendly. "Thank you, mother."

"I don't know how you can possibly sleep with the news today. You better grab one before the all the good ones are taken." Ginny winked.

Hermione sat up and frowned. "What news?"

Ginny's smile dimmed. "You didn't hear the news? About the new law?"

"What new law?"

Ginny grabbed the Daily Prophet from Hermione's bed side table that she hadn't bothered reading yet. Ginny unfolded it and thrust it into Hermione's hands. Hermione read the big, bold letters on the cover of the paper. "**_THICKNESSE APPROVES MARRIAGE LAW._**_"_ She re-read the article ten times before looking back up to Ginny who had been waiting for a reaction.

"He couldn't possibly do this," she said. Her mind was numb with shock then started to whirl with possibilities and a way to get out of it.

"_All physically and mentally healthy wizards and witches over the age of nineteen must marry before the start of the new year. All wizards and witches can petition for a mate by which the petitioned wizard or witch can choose the person they wish to wed._ _If a wizard or witch of mental and physical health cannot choose a mate, the wizard or witch must fill out an application form of which the ministry will find an acceptable match._ _All pairings must be confirmed compatible by the Ministry of Magic before marriage._ _All wizards and witches must go through a physical by a physician to ensure fertility before marriage. _ _All couples must produce one child within the first two years of marriage and a second child within the following three years of marriage." _

"You have a year to find someone, Hermione, I'm sure you'll be able to. You're a great catch, when you get your sleep anyways."

Hermione looked at Ginny sullenly. "I don't have a year, Ginny."

"What? What do you mean?"

"I don't have a year. I have a month. I used the time turner in my third year, turning me nineteen last September and it's November now. I have a month to get married."

Ginny looked quietly at Hermione who was looking hopelessly into space. "I'm sure you'll find someone."

"No, I won't. Ron and I are done and he is with Lavender. You have Harry. Neville has Luna. Everyone has someone except for me. I have no one."

After a few moments of silence a large barn owl flew onto the window sill of the dorm. Hermione got up and opened the window. The bird patiently held out its foot as she untied the letter from its leg. The owl took off and Hermione shut the window and opened the letter.

_Miss Hermione Jean Granger, _

_ The following people have petitioned for your hand in marriage: _

_ Carrow, Amycus_

_ Crabbe, Vincent_

_ Dolohov, Antonin_

_ Goyle, Gregory_

_ Greyback, Fenrir_

_ Malfoy, Draco_

_ Nott, Theodore _

_ Rowle, Thorfinn_

_ Ministry of Magic_

Hermione shuddered as she read the names. All of them were Death Eaters. Some of them she knew and others she had only heard of from Harry and during Order meetings. She handed the list to Ginny who read it over before looking up at her.

"If these are my only options, then I'll just go into hiding."

"You can still choose someone not on the list." Ginny said.

"I don't have anyone else. It's not like men come banging down my door."

"Maybe you can talk to Dumbledore. He may be able to do something."

Hermione sighed. "I doubt it, but it can't hurt to try."

SS/HG

After an immense amount of effort from Ginny, Hermione was persuaded to go to dinner later that night. She sat in her usual spot beside Harry and Ginny with Ron on the opposite side of the table next to Lavender and Lavender beside Neville and Luna. Unfortunately for Hermione, she had a perfect view of Lavender pawing at Ron and Ron eating like he hadn't had food in years. Bits of potato and peas were scattered around Ron's dinner plate that Hermione tried to not see.

"Hermione, do you think Voldemort is behind this?" Harry asked turning towards her.

"Behind what?"

"The Marriage Law."

"Of course I do. It's completely archaic. Only Voldemort would do something this twisted. I'm going to talk to Dumbledore after dinner; maybe he will have some answers. Did you happen to get a list of petitioners today?"

Harry swallowed a mouthful of bread before answering. "Yeah, I've never heard of half of the people on it. What about you?"

Hermione looked down at her plate as she answered. "I have all Death Eaters," she said quietly.

Harry looked startled. "There must be someone who wasn't a Death Eater on there.'

Hermione shook her head. "Not one. Harry, I'm worried. I have a month to find someone and they may turn out to be my only options."

"You can fill out that form for the Ministry to set you up with someone."

"If Voldemort is behind this, then my efforts of finding someone else is futile. He will make sure that I end up with one of his Death Eaters no matter what I do."

Harry's brow furrowed. "We'll find a way around this."

Hermione gave him a sad smile. "I hope so."

SS/HG

"It's the only way, Severus," Dumbledore said calmly.

Severus pushed off Dumbledore's desk that he had been leaning over. He paced to one side of the room then to the other. "I refuse. She is a child."

"She is eighteen, Severus, which makes her a legal adult. She has been through things that have matured her beyond her years."

"She is a student."

"Not for much longer."

"She is infuriating and impossible."

"Then she is your equal." Dumbledore smiled at the glare Snape gave him. "Come now, my boy. This is the only way for her."

Hermione could hear raised voices from inside Dumbledore's office. She tentatively knocked on the door. The door swung open and Snape whirled around to see her standing awkwardly in the door way.

"If this is a bad time, I can come back later, Professor."

"Nonsense. Please come in. Severus, have a seat."

"No thank you." He grumbled.

"Severus," Dumbledore repeated, "have a seat."

Snape crossed the room to sit rigidly in a chair beside Hermione in front of Dumbledore's desk. Hermione fidgeted on the edge of her own seat.

"Now, what did you need to see me about, dear?"

"It's about the Marriage Law, sir. I wanted to talk about my- erm- petitioners."

"Ah, yes. We were just talking about that. Severus told me about the Death Eaters. Did you get any other petitions?"

Hermione cleared her throat. "No, sir."

Dumbledore looked to Severus who looked ready to murder. Hermione glanced at Snape then back to Dumbledore. "We have come up with a solution to your situation. Severus has so graciously offered to petition for you. He is the highest ranking Death Eater so Voldemort will most likely be willing and he is guaranteed to not do anything… harmful to you."

Hermione looked to Snape who was glaring a hole into Dumbledore. "That's very- erm- kind of him, but I don't want to make him do anything that he will resent for the rest of his life."

"Not likely. You'll most likely be widowed by the end of the war." Snape muttered under his breath.

"Severus would be pleased to aide you."

"He doesn't look very pleased." Hermione said.

"He just doesn't know he is yet. Give him some time. Severus?"

"I will talk to the Dark Lord then send in my request if approved."

"Splendid. Now, off with the both of you. Try to get some sleep, you both look like you've just been dragged through the Forbidden Forest."

Hermione watched Snape rise and leave in a billow of robes. She sighed and stood as well. "Then Voldemort is behind this law?"

Dumbledore nodded gravely. "I'm afraid so. I think it best if we all prepare for what is to come."


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Hello everyone! I've updated the last chapter and some of the new things are important to the story so you may want to read the pervious chapter before beginning this one. I'm sorry it's taken me so long to update, but I was in a place without a computer for a long time. I accidentally deleted the note on the last chapter and I don't remember what it said so I'll just remind you that this will be long and very explicit. Please exercise caution when deciding to read this story as it includes torture, rape, strong language, and mature themes. It is rated M for a good reason so please know what you can handle.

Thank you to my amazing beta, SnapesTwin, your editing was greatly appreciated!

Please read and review!

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Chapter Two

When Hermione returned later that night to the common room of Gryffindor tower, everyone besides Lavender had waited up for her. Hermione flopped herself onto one of the big, red, squishy arm chairs in front of the fire place and stared into its dancing flames.

"You were right, Harry. Voldemort is behind this."

"What is Dumbledore going to do about it?" Harry asked quietly from beside her.

Hermione turned her gaze from the fire to Harry's stricken face. "I don't know. I'm not entirely sure he even knows."

"So what did he tell you about your… uh… position?" Ginny asked her face a mask of worry that matched Harry's.

Hermione looked down at her intertwined hands. "He has a solution for me." She looked around to everyone's curious faces before staring into the flame again. "Voldemort will make sure I end up with one of his Death Eaters no matter what we try to do to stop it," she explained.

"Why would he want you married off to one of his Death Eaters? You're a muggle born who would 'taint' his pure blood lackeys." Ron asked.

"I assume he will try to get to Harry through me," Hermione answered.

"Then what is Dumbledore's solution if you can't get around marrying one of his Death Eaters and you have to marry someone?" Ginny asked.

Hermione swallowed and looked back to her hands fidgeting in her lap. She took a deep breath before answering. "Snape."

Ron stood up abruptly, Ginny gasped in horror, Neville looked ashen, and Hermione winced at Harry's yell. "You are _not_ marrying Snape. Has he lost his mind? It's Snape for Merlin's sake!"

"He's doing what's best for my safety."

"What's best for your safety? Hermione, he is setting you up with Snape. Nothing is safe about that," Ron yelled.

"We'll take you into hiding," Harry began. "We can move and then–"

"And then what, Harry? You and Ginny will throw your lives away to keep me a secret? Ron will leave his family and never see them again? You're not giving up everything we've worked for just because I don't want to marry someone. I appreciate the thought, Harry, but don't be ridiculous," Hermione huffed. She was standing as were Harry and Ron. "It's only marriage," she said quietly.

Ginny slowly stood and put a hand on Hermione's shoulder. "I'm sorry, 'Mione."

Hermione smiled a bit. "It's just Snape."

SS/HG

Hermione tossed and turned in bed that night. She couldn't stop thinking about Snape and her friends' reactions. She knew he didn't like her, but he was willing to marry her for the good of the cause. He was giving up so much when he had already given up a lot. He looked murderous, yet he still agreed to Dumbledore's proposition. She flipped onto her stomach then rolled back on her side before sighing and giving up. She sat up and threw the covers off of herself and changed out of her night clothes into jeans and a sweater. She quietly tiptoed out of the dorm room into the common room then into the hall. It was way past curfew, but she was yet again unable to sleep.

Hermione made it to the library without being caught. She moved through the stacks of books with the tip of her wand dimly lit looking for anything on marriage laws or arranged marriages. After she had a fairly sizeable stack of books on her favorite table in the back of the library, she sat down and started to read.

Her neck started to stiffen as well as her back after several hours of reading on the hard, wooden chair. She stretched then grimaced at the cracking and popping of her joints and back. She saw something move out of the corner of her eye and spun around in her seat to see it. She pointed her wand at the general area of the movement and squinted through the darkness. After several moments of straining her eyes to see something she wasn't all entirely sure existed, she turned around back to her book. Hermione jumped and gasped and aimed her wand into a black clothed torso beside her chair.

A big hand brushed her wand away and she looked up into the dark brown eyes of Severus Snape. "Professor?"

"It is past curfew, Miss. Granger." His velvety low voice purred in an almost dangerous tone.

"I-I'm sorry, sir, I couldn't sleep."

"So you came down to the library to read," Snape looked to the open page of her book. "_Violent Arranged Magical Marriages and How to Protect Yourself from Your Spouse._" His eyebrow rose as he loomed over her.

Hermione's heart felt like it was going at hyper speed. Her stomach felt like it had just dropped out of her arse. Her body started to shake and she knew when she answered, her voice would be twice as worse as her body. "Y-yes, sir."

"Come with me, Miss. Granger."

Hermione stumbled from her chair and followed Snape's brisk pace out of the library down to the dungeons of the castle. She knew she was walking to her death. But on bright side, if Snape killed her now, she wouldn't have to worry about marriage. Snape led her into the potions class room then to the potions storeroom. He muttered something under his breath and the back wall, which was lined with all kinds of ingredients in jars, swung back to reveal a small office with a fire lit on the far wall. A dark wooden desk sat against the other side of the wall which Snape sat down behind.

He raised an eyebrow at her and Hermione got the silent message. She quickly sat in the chair across from his desk and waited for him to say something. Snape seemed to stare at her for what seemed like a year before gently saying, "I'm not going to hurt you, if that is what you are worried about."

Hermione was taken aback by his warm tone. It was very different from the icy bark she was used to hearing in class. Her jaw worked for a moment as she tried to think of something to say. "I-I'm – I didn't mean for you to see that."

"Obviously," he said.

"I-I just don't know what to expect. I really don't know you at all, Professor."

He leaned back in his chair. "What do you know, Miss. Granger?"

Hermione thought for a few moments before answering. "I know you are intimidating and seem to exude power. I know you would do anything for the cause, even marry an insufferable know-it-all. I know you demand respect in all aspects of your life and you place a lot of importance on your dignity. I really have no idea about your past other than what Harry saw when you were teaching him Occlumency. I know you are devout to Dumbledore as he is to you, which is enough to convince me of your loyalty." Hermione looked up at him to gauge his reaction.

His expression stayed impassive as he looked her over. "And how do you know all of this? My reputation should lead you to say some things that are not as… diplomatic as what you said."

"I don't listen to what others say. I prefer to judge a person on what I observe, not what is being said."

He seemed to think over her answer for a moment before saying, "I see."

Hermione was silent for a while before softly saying, "I know this isn't at all what you wanted, sir, and I know you are making a great sacrifice for Harry's safety–"

"Just another sacrifice I can add to my list," Snape murmured quietly to himself.

"So I would like to thank you and extend my apologies. I will try to make your life as free of me as I can."

Snape was a bit surprised. She wasn't giving him a speech on how 'it's for the good of the wizarding world' or on how much Potter needed to be protected, especially now. She was unexpectedly showing grace in a time of cowardice. "I have yet to have my offer of petitioning for you accepted by the Dark Lord." Snape said.

Hermione felt like his eyes were hypnotizing her to look into them. "I know, sir. The Ministry sends me an altered list as soon as someone new is added to it."

"Then I expect to see you when my petition is added," Snape said.

"Yes, sir."

Hermione was excused, and went back to her rooms. Her mind was racing even more now that she had, in a way, talked to Snape. He was impossible to read which, she supposed, made him the great spy that he was, but for her purpose only frustrated her.

SS/HG

Hermione woke up earlier than usual the next morning and groaned at the time her clock read. She had barely slept at all and she had classes to attend today. She grudgingly forced herself out of the warm bed and dressed in her uniform with her heaviest robe on top of it. She grabbed a book from her trunk and headed out of the school.

The hallways were deserted at this time and she felt a bit happy that they were empty. She wasn't in the mood for idle chat this morning and just wanted to be left to her thoughts. She trudged through the snow that came up to above her ankles and walked down to the lake. She perched on a boulder that sat beside the glassy water and cast a warming charm on herself before opening her book to read. She was soon immersed in the book, finally able to forget her impending 'doom', as her mind had slowly come to call it. It had been almost a week since she had talked to Professor Snape in his office and she knew her time was running out. She had been stalling the visit he had requested that night and decided to feign ignorance to his petition that had arrived yesterday. She knew if she didn't see him today, he would find her and make her talk to him.

It was getting late, the sun had emerged from the tree line of the forbidden forest and class would be starting soon. Hermione regretfully shut her book and started her walk back to the castle. Her first class of the day was Arithmancy so her morning wouldn't be too taxing, although her days never were. She had double potions at the end of the day that she wasn't looking forward to at all, but tried to push that to the back of her mind as she entered the castle. The warmth made her frozen fingers tingle as she walked to the Great Hall and sat in her usual spot beside Harry. She took a piece of toast and spread jam on it pretending to listen to her friends' conversation. Hermione chewed and was lost in her thoughts until she had a strange feeling of someone looking at her. She looked up to see Malfoy staring at her from the Slytherin table. He was glaring at her like she done him a personal wrong and he wanted revenge. Hermione quickly looked down at her plate trying to ignore him. When she looked up to the head table, she caught Professor Snape's eye. He had been looking at her as well. What was going on? Harry suddenly laughed loud enough to pull her gaze away from the potions master and back to her table. She smiled slightly when he nudged her and asked if she had understood.

"I should best be going. I wouldn't want to be late for Herbology. You know there's a plant in Austria…" Hermione drifted off into her own thoughts when Neville started in on his obsession with plants. She should probably get going as well when she saw everyone had started to leave the Great Hall. As she stood up she saw Malfoy glaring at her again then looked at Professor Snape who was looking at Malfoy before his dark gaze snapped to her. Hermione felt like she couldn't move. His eyes were boring into hers and she felt like he was trying to say something to her. Her brow furrowed for a moment before being pulled from the grip of his gaze.

"What are you staring at?" Ginny looked, trying to follow her path of sight.

Hermione looked to her before looking down and grabbing her bag from the floor. "Nothing."

Ginny was still trying to find what she was looking at, but quickly she gave up and caught up with Hermione who was walking out of the Great Hall.

SS/HG

Hermione's classes were flying by, just as she had hoped they wouldn't. She walked into Potions and saw Professor Snape's dark eyes following her. She met his intense gaze while she sat down. She knew that he knew she had received her letter from the ministry and was probably angry she didn't come to him right away. She dropped her gaze as Harry sat beside her and started to talk to her about the essay that was due today. She was glad for the distraction, but she could still feel his eyes on her. The door shut with a loud bang and everyone snapped to attention. Hermione turned to the front and watched Professor Snape who was slowly rising from his seat to stand at the front of the class. He slowly made his way around his desk before leaning on the front of it. Hermione's eyes were glued to his every motion. There was something about his movements that made her feel…different. His dark eyes surveyed the class. They rested on her for a moment longer than everyone else before gliding over the rest.

"You're essays on sleeping draught's use and other uses that have developed are due today, as I'm sure you all know. Get them out." His silky voice said slowly.

There was a rustle of papers and books and quills before silence that signaled everyone had theirs out. Snape flicked his wand and the papers flew to his desk and stacked themselves neatly on the top.

"I'm sure you have all read the lesson assigned, so these questions should be of no problem for you." He said with a smirk. "Shall we start with something easy? What is this lesson on?"

There was silence. Hermione raised her hand.

Snape's eyes snapped to hers before sliding over other peoples'. Some hid their eyes from him and others were so used to these questions and not knowing their answers that his intimidation had lost some of its strength.

"McCoullagh," Snape said.

A tall, muscular boy with tawny coloured hair who sat in the back with his friend looked at Snape. "I don't know, sir."

Snape smirked. "Ten points from Hufflepuff for ignorance and irresponsibility." He looked around the room before settling on Hermione again. "Miss Granger. Care to enlighten your idiot peers?"

Was that a compliment hidden in an insult? Did he just say she wasn't an idiot? Hermione swallowed. Her mouth was suddenly very dry. "The lesson was on ice potion, sir."

"Otherwise known as?"

"Black fire potion, sir."

"And its uses?"

"The Ice potion is a potion used to move through black flames unscathed. Effect-wise, it is similar to the purple fire potion: it makes the drinker feel an icy surface surrounding him or her, and provides protection for going through the flames safely." Hermione replied. She had first seen this potion in her first year as a part of the potion riddle to get to the Philosopher's Stone.

Snape didn't reply, but moved through the rest of his lecture. He hadn't even insulted her on her word-for-word definition. He flicked his wand at the board and the ingredients list appeared in his small scrawl signaling for them to start on the potion.

Hermione brewed quietly, occasionally looking up when she felt Professor Snape's eyes on her. He moved about the class sporadically during the period to check and critique their progress. When she bottled her finished potion, she quietly walked up to his desk and put the phial in the wooden rack on his desk. He looked up from marking their essays to watch her.

"I require a word with you after class," he said quietly, so as not to draw attention.

Hermione nodded. "Of course." She walked back to her desk and opened her potions text and started to read the next lesson.

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A/N: So how was it? Please review!


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: **This chapter has mature content in it so beware.** Let me know what you think by reviewing! Special thanks to my beta: SnapesTwin for all the help!

Everything belongs to J.K. Rowling.

* * *

Chapter Three

Hermione let the others pass her by as she waited for them to file out of the potions class room. She stood and packed her bag while they slowly shuffled out of the class telling Harry not wait for her. Snape watched her with his dark eyes as she finished. He flicked his wand and the door shut behind the last person to exit. Snape leaned against the front of his desk with his arms crossed over his chest. Hermione walked to stand a ways in front of him and waited for him to speak.

"I assume you received the petition from the ministry?"

"Yes. It just came yesterday."

"And do you remember what I told you to do when you were in possession of it?"

"You told me to come to you."

"So why didn't you?"

"It came very early in the morning past curfew and I didn't want to break the rules."

Snape gave her a come-on-I-wasn't-born-yesterday look. "That has never stopped you before."

"I didn't want to wake you." Hermione was really lying now.

"I would have just gotten back and you know that."

Hermione sighed. She had run out of believable excuses. "I didn't want to come right away."

"And why is that?"

Hermione looked at the side wall. "I don't know."

Snape didn't say anything.

"I sent in my approval after I got the letter." She said and looked back to Snape.

"That would be why Mr. Malfoy was staring at you this morning."

"He knew already?" She asked a little shocked.

Snape nodded then was quiet. "When would you like to do it?"

Hermione looked at him confused. "Do what?"

Snape glared at her. A look of relisation came over her before he continued. "We have two weeks left to…"

Hermione nodded. "I suppose this weekend. The next will be chaotic with people trying to fit in last minute."

Snape nodded and they both said nothing for a while, thinking of their last week of freedom and the imposing weekend ahead of them. "I will inform Professor Dumbledore."

Hermione nodded, but said nothing.

"I will escort you out of the castle Saturday evening after dinner. We will have to use the floo in Professor Dumbledore's office since you cannot apparate on school grounds."

Hermione nodded again then drew her gaze from the floor to Professor Snape. He was tall, well over six foot, and towered over her five foot seven frame. His shoulders were broad and his arms thick. His hands were big and his fingers long and calloused. His nose was straight and his lips thin. His legs were long and his feet looked huge in his dragon hide boots. His hair hung to his shoulders in a thick, dark sheet of black making his skin look pale. His eyes were so dark brown, they looked almost black and they were narrowed at her as her own light brown eyes slowly traveled over his body. Hermione blushed and looked away. She wasn't quite sure why she blushed, but she knew whatever she had been doing was wrong.

"Is that sufficient, Miss. Granger?"

Hermione's eyes snapped to his. She wasn't sure if he was talking about her obvious assessing of his body that she refused to call ogling, or the plans for their…Saturday event. "Um, I think so."

Snape nodded and let her go. She collected her things and slug her bag over her shoulder before leaving his class room with the feeling of his eyes on her back.

SS/HG

Snape was sitting in a chair by the fire in his rooms reading a book. He looked up when he noticed Hermione leaning in the doorway. She slowly walked over to him, stopping in front of him. His eyes glittered in the flickering light of the fire, the crackling of it the only sound in the room besides their breathing. He slowly shut his book as his eyes traveled over her. She walked slowly forward until she was in-between his legs. His huge hands slowly rose to encircle her hips. They pushed her sweater up so he could feel her soft skin. She leaned into his touch and pulled off the maroon sweater Molly had given her for Christmas the previous year, her lacy black bra the only thing covering her chest now. His rough hands slowly slid up her sides making goose bumps rise on her skin. His thumbs gently rubbed her tight nipples through her bra, his eyes never leaving her own. Hermione let out a sigh of pleasure before leaning forward slowly to kiss him. His head was forced back with her intense kiss. Her tongue darted out to lick his upper lip before she felt his own tongue invade her mouth. It probed and rubbed in her mouth eliciting a groan from her. She felt his grip tighten on her hips as he pulled her to his body. His fingers unzipped her jeans and she helped push them down her legs. She felt his grip tight at her hips again as he pulled her closer to him. She kneeled on the chair, straddling his lap. His hands gripped her ass pulling her flush against his erection. Hermione moaned into his mouth and ground her hips into his hard member. His breath caught before he groaned looking up into her eyes. His eyes were heated and intense looking as they glittered in the dim light. Hermione's fingers laced into his hair as she leaned in to possessively claim his mouth again. His hands tightened on her ass, his thumbs stroking her through her lace underwear. His mouth kissed down to the nape of her neck before finding her pulse point. Her heart was going a million miles an hour under his tongue as he sucked and licked her skin sending shivers through her.

Hermione gasped and her eyes flew open. She was lying in her bed in the girls' dormitory in Gryffindor tower drenched in sweat. She was panting and her heart was racing. Her underwear was soaked and she refused to acknowledge with what. Her dream had been so vivid, like she could actually feel what he had been doing to her. Hermione sighed and looked at her alarm clock. It was four in the morning which meant it was now Saturday. Hermione groaned and flipped on her stomach. She closed her eyes and willed her mind to stop going back to her dream. Where the hell had that come from?

SS/HG

Hermione sat beside Harry at the Gryffindor table barely touching her food. The great hall was packed full of chattering students excited for the long weekend. Hermione, on the other hand, was trying desperately not to think about the next two days ahead of her. Her stomach was in knots and she couldn't focus on the conversation her friends were having because her mind seemed to be rushing a million miles an hour. She glanced at her watch for the twentieth time during dinner before rising from her spot at the table and giving a weak smile to the sympathetic looks her friends were giving her. She turned and left the great hall and went to the restroom. She flicked her wand at her outfit which immediately changed from her school uniform to a white oxford dress shirt with matching shoes and black dress pants. She didn't want to seem too formal which ruled out dress robes, but didn't want to seem too informal which ruled out jeans and a sweater, her usual weekend attire during winter. She looked herself over in the mirror before flicking her wand at her face. The spell had smoothed out her complexion and made her frizzy, overbearing hair into waves that flowed down her back. She checked over herself again before meeting her own eyes in the mirror and taking a deep breath to calm herself. She slowly made her way to the entrance of the great hall but didn't enter. She sighed and leaned against the wall, closing her eyes and trying to calm down.

"Are you ready, Miss. Granger?"

Hermione gasped and jumped, her eyes flying open to meet dark eyes looking back at her. "As I'll ever be." She replied after slowing her racing heart.

Snape hesitated for a moment, looking like he wanted to say something more, before turning and leading the way to Dumbledore's office.

Hermione's heels clicked on the stone floor as she strode to keep up with him. When they reached the office, Dumbledore wasn't anywhere to be seen. Hermione looked up at Snape. "Why isn't he here?"

"It is still during the evening meal time." Snape glanced down at her. "Not everyone is in the same position."

Hermione watched Snape grab a handful of powder from the mantle on the fireplace and throw it into the fire. The flames turned green and he murmured the address.

He caught Hermione's look of apprehension. "Are you ready, Miss. Granger?"

Hermione looked up into his dark eyes before nodding and stepping into the green flame. Her feet crashed on the stone of the fireplace making her knees give out momentarily. She moved quickly to let Professor Snape in who appeared shortly after she moved. He stepped gracefully from the fire and looked at her before leading her through the throng of people. He walked with her down several hallways and into an elevator before leading her down several more hallways until stopping in front of a small woman behind a reception desk. The woman smiled at them with overly-whitened teeth and asked if she could help them.

"My…fiancé and I are scheduled to be…seen." He said, choosing his words carefully.

The woman nodded and checked a long list on a scroll before asking, "Mr. Snape and Miss. Granger?"

"Yes." Snape simply replied.

"A woman will call you in shortly."

Snape nodded and walked with Hermione over to the chairs lining the wall opposite the desk. Hermione sat beside him and crossed her legs, leaning away from him. Snape watched the door for what felt like forever never moving his gaze. Hermione bounced her leg nervously.

Snape's hand suddenly flew out and pressed on her knee. Hermione looked up at him confused and shocked. "Quit that incessant bouncing before I hex your leg off." He hissed.

Hermione uncrossed her legs when he removed his hand and sighed. How long had they been waiting? Her fingers started to thump on the chair's arm and Snape glared at them, his eyes looked like they could burn through her small hand to the chair. Hermione glanced up at him then figured out what he was glaring at and folded her hands in her lap. He drug his gaze from her back to the door.

After several more lifetimes of waiting, the door opened and another woman called them back. "Thank god." Snape muttered as he rose from the chair. He let Hermione walk in front of him out of the small waiting room and into a hall with several offices lining both walls. They turned into one on the right and sat down in the chairs offered.

The woman started asking them questions and tested their wands before approving the couple. Hermione took a deep breath as the woman slid the papers across the small desk after she had messily signed the lines. She gave them a quill and Snape signed on all the lines necessary. He handed her the quill and she took it in her shaking hand. She bit her lip as she looked at the daunting line before her. She glanced up at Snape who was looking at her then at the woman who was also looking at her then back to Snape. She took another deep breath before scribbling her curly signature on the parchment.

The woman took the paper back and smiled at them. "Congratulations, Mr. and Mrs. Snape. The Ministry wishes you the very best." She stood and shook their hands, Hermione still in shock over hearing her new name. She followed Snape out the door and out of the hallway and eventually out of the ministry and into Dumbledore's office. Into her new life.

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A/N: So what did you think of this chapter? Please please please review!


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: Hello everyone! I had some questions about Hermione's age and the law so here goes. I made the age of the law nineteen because I didn't want it to affect Hogwarts students. Hermione's use of the time turner also effected my decision of the age because she would have to be quite a bit older than Harry and Ron. Hope that answers any questions you had.

I am again going to warn you all that this story will be dark. It contains explicit language, rape, and torture. Although there will be a happy ending in the sequel, the first will not be happy. Please know your limitations as I would prefer not to get angry messages later on.

A big thank you to my beta SnapesTwin!

Everything belongs to J.K. Rowling.

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**Chapter Four**

Dumbledore was the first thing Hermione saw as she stumbled from the fireplace with Snape on her heels. His eyes twinkled as he watched them trip and stumble over each other. Snape regained his composure and walked over to Dumbledore with Hermione trailing behind him.

"It went well, I presume?"

"In essence." Snape said.

"I've already had your things moved down to your rooms." Dumbledore said to Hermione.

"Our rooms?"

"You'll be sharing Professor Snape's rooms. Didn't I tell you?"

"No." Hermione said, panicking a little.

"It wouldn't make very much sense to have newlyweds on opposite sides and opposite floors of the castle no would it?" Dumbledore smiled.

Hermione didn't know what to say. What could she say? She was now sharing rooms with the schools most feared Professor, her new husband. "All of my things?"

Dumbledore smiled. "Of course. I've had Crookshanks moved in and ready when you get back." Snape's face twisted into a grimace at the mention of her cat. "Now off with you two. You have a long night ahead of you."

Hermione was weary of the twinkle in his eye as he said that. She glanced at Snape who was looking down at her. She started for the door with Snape behind her. She wound her way through the school to the dungeons where she stopped and looked up at him. He silently moved in front of her and led her into the potions class room and into the ingredients storeroom through his office then muttered something under his breath and the fire in the fireplace died and the fireplace swung back to reveal Snape's private rooms. He watched her take in the room, because it was simply that, a room. It was long with a fireplace at the far end and a large four poster bed at the other end. There was a worn couch in front of the fire and the wall opposite of the door had shelves in it lined with books. The walls were a dark green as was the bed. There was a door that, presumably, lead to a bathroom. Hermione saw her trunk sitting behind the couch and Crookshanks curled up on the couch, ignoring them.

"I think I will take a shower, if you don't mind?" Hermione asked. A nice, hot shower sounded perfect right now.

Snape shook his head and she walked to the bathroom door and opened it to find a clean, white room with a mirror and a claw-foot tub with a shower head coming from the wall. There were black towels hanging from a metal bar and she noticed her bath things were already in their places. She turned the shower on and waited for the water to warm before stepping in and closing the curtain. The hot water ran over her, washing the day's nerves away. She wanted to stay in here forever.

After a half hour shower, she stepped out and wrapped a large, black towel around her. She magically dried her hair into soft waves and reached for her clothes then noticed…they weren't here. She had forgotten to grab them from her bag when she had gone for her shower. Now what was she going to do?

Hermione bit her lip in indecision. If she summoned her clothes, a pile would fly into the bathroom door and attract attention. If she went to get her clothes, she would most definitely attract attention. She glanced at the door then sighed. _Hermione Jean Granger, he is your husband now. Suck it up and go out there! _Her mind chastised her.

She grabbed the door handle and with a deep breath, opened the door. Her hand was white from gripping the towel so hard as she walked to her trunk. She tried desperately not to look at her professor who was reclining on the bed as she flipped the top of her trunk over and rummaged in it until she found a white tank top and plaid green and blue night-shorts. She quickly went back to the bathroom and changed into her pajamas before slowly opening the door and walking out.

She looked at her professor who was watching her coy entrance. She didn't know what to say or do so she waited for him to say something. When he didn't, she looked at the floor and walked to the couch which, thankfully, was turned away from the bed. She sat down on it before arranging the pillows to a more comfortable position and lying down. Her eyes slowly closed after a while just staring into the flickering flame and she fell asleep.

SS/HG

Hermione awoke the next morning freezing in a ball on a strange couch. She looked around trying to figure out where she was, before realisation dawned on her. She was no longer Hermione Granger. She was now Hermione Snape, which meant she was in Snape's rooms. She sat up from her fetal position on the worn couch and looked at the bed. The covers looked like they hadn't been moved except the right side which was flipped over like someone had gotten up from it recently. Snape wasn't sleeping anymore, so where was he?

She got up from the couch and stretched, her joints popping and cracking. Her neck couldn't turn properly and her back and hips felt like they belonged to a arthritic three hundred year old. Hermione groaned and rubbed her neck before walking to her trunk and gathering her things from it. She opened the bathroom door to find a very naked Professor Snape standing in front of the mirror.

"Miss. Granger?"

Hermione made a small, squeak-like noise before tuning and fleeing from the door way, closing the door behind herself. She threw her things down on the floor and hid her face in her hands shaking her head wildly. She heard the bathroom door open and she spun around to see a now clothed, irate looking professor coming towards her.

"I am _so_ sorry, Professor. I didn't know- I thought you had left, so I was going to change and then you were… I'm sorry, sir." She didn't want to look him in the eyes for fear of what she would see there.

He was silent for a long time just staring at the mortified girl. "Maybe think of knocking in the future, Miss. Granger."

"That's not my name." Hermione said before she could bite it back. Her head snapped up and she looked at him waiting for the anger. He raised his eyebrow at her. She blushed and looked away before trying to amend. "I just meant that-"

"Would you prefer Mrs. Snape?"

Hermione shook her head. She looked back up to him and saw his eyebrow was still raised. She took a breath before answering. "Hermione is fine. I just meant that after last night I'm not…" She trailed off, not needing to finish her sentence.

Snape was quiet before saying, "Would you like to go to the great hall for breakfast then, Hermione?"

Hermione loved the way her name sounded coming from him. It was very defined, every syllable clear. It flowed from his voice like a purr that made her feel… unusual. "Um, no. I'd rather not."

Snape's eyebrow once again rose. "And why is that?"

Hermione looked at the floor. "I don't want to see my friends just yet. They will bombard me the moment I set foot in the great hall, and I'm just not sure if I'm ready for that."

Snape nodded and snapped his fingers. A small house elf appeared and bowed so its nose scraped the floor. "How may I assist Master and Mistress Snape?"

Hermione visibly flinched at that address which didn't go unnoticed by Snape. "We would like some breakfast, Lolly, something… warm." He also noticed she had goose bumps on her skin, as she was not used to the cold of the dungeons.

"Right away Master Snape." The little house elf said before disappearing with a crack.

Hermione tried to look around, but grimaced at the pain that shot up her neck when she went too far. Snape noticed that as well. "You could have slept in the bed." He said quietly.

Hermione looked at him. She just stared at him for what felt like forever. He was starting to get uncomfortable under her scrutinizing gaze until she finally said something. "I move a lot in my sleep."

It was Snape's turn to stare. He didn't know how to reply. There was a sudden crack and Lolly appeared with a try of steaming food. The little house elf bowed before disappearing again. Snape looked at Hermione before going to get the food. He carried the tray over to the bed and sat on his side of the bed, propped up by pillows. Hermione wearily looked at the bed then to the food then to Snape then back to the bed before slowly walking over to it and sitting gingerly on the unoccupied side. She took some warm toast from the tray and spread jam over it before settling back into her own pillows. They chewed in silence until Snape cleared his throat.

"There are some things we need to talk about."

Hermione turned her attention away from her wondering thoughts and to her professor.

He looked like he was struggling to find the right wording. Hermione grew more worried the longer he didn't say anything. "There is a… catch to the finalization of the marriage in the law." Hermione's big, innocent eyes stared at him causing him to look at the fire across the room. "In order to consummate the marriage, the involved parties must… well they must…" He looked at her, hoping to find understanding in her expressive eyes, but it was sadly lacking from their amber depths. "They must have sex." He finally spit out.

Hermione's lips quirked up into an amused smile. "I'm not thick, professor. I've read the law dozens of times. I knew what I was signing on to."

Snape's eyes snapped to hers, shock passing through them before becoming impassive again. "Good." He said simply. Hermione was silent, but Snape could practically see her mind flying. "What is it?" He inwardly groaned. He had a feeling he already knew.

"When were you planning to…?"

"The Dark Lord will… replace me, shall we say, if I don't do my job." He looked at her for an understanding. "It must be soon. He will be calling me before long." Hermione nodded and nibbled on her toast. "I can obliviate it after, if you would like?"

Hermione's eyes snapped to his. "Why would I want you to do _that_?"

Snape looked down at her with his I-wasn't-born-yesterday look.

"It wouldn't matter who did it to me, I would still want to remember it." She said. She looked down at his left arm that was the closest to her. "How long do you think we have?"

He didn't answer immediately, but watched her look at his covered arm. "Not long." He said gently.

Hermione dragged her eyes away from his arm and to his eyes understanding in her own.

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A/N: So what did you think? I'd like to thank everyone who has reviewed. You don't know how much I appreciate your comments. Please reveiw!


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: Alrighty here it is! I know I haven't been very quick about updating so my apologies. I've have an insane schedule right now so bear with me. This is the last relatively light chapter so for those of you to whom I've been warning for several chapters now to not read if you don't like what this story will entail: please turn back now! Reader discretion is advised because there is **MATURE CONTENT** in this chapter!

I'd also like to update you as to where I am in the writing process of this story. I am working on chapter fourteen right now and I am so upset with my stupid computer! I had two more chapters written after the fourteenth and my computer lost them so I have to re-write them. Grrrr!

Anyways, I hope you enjoy this chapter and review even if you don't!

Special thanks to my beta SnapesTwin

Everything belongs to J.K. Rowling

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**Chapter Five**

Hermione had spent the majority of the day in the library, hiding from her friends. She knew she had to tell them when she left the library around seven that night. She had skipped all of her meals in the great hall today and she knew they knew she did it to get away from them. She made her way to Gryffindor tower, giving the password to the Fat Lady when asked. She walked through the portrait hole and into the common room to see her friends sitting around the fire talking and laughing.

Hermione watched them before deciding to interrupt. She sat beside Ginny on the floor and started to answer questions.

"Where were you?"

"What has he done to you?"

"Why weren't you around today?"

"Has he told you when he's going to kill you?"

"Why are your things not in the dormitory?"

Hermione answered each question with as much patience as she could muster. Ron seemed to be firing the majority of them, unsurprisingly. She defended their attacks on him, as she normally did, but it seemed more… personal this time. After an hour of interrogation, everyone went to bed to do homework or sleep. Ginny stayed behind to talk to Hermione by herself which Hermione was grateful for.

"So, how has he been?"

"He's been surprisingly understanding about it all. I thought he would be a bit more, I don't know, Snape-like?"

"That's odd. I wouldn't picture him as the 'loving husband' type."

"He isn't. He's just not as angry as I thought he would be."

"Still, it's odd." Ginny said. They were both quiet before Ginny started to smile. "Have you done the deed yet?"

Hermione scoffed and playfully smacked her arm. "No! Why would ask that?"

Ginny shrugged still snickering. "It's the law."

"No, not yet." Hermione repeated. "Even the idea of doing _that_ with _him_ just… makes me a bit nervous I suppose. I still see him as my teacher. If he was anyone else, it would be different." Hermione looked at Ginny. "You're lucky. You know who you'll be with."

"Don't think of him as 'Professor Snape' think of him as 'Severus Snape' just another man with no affiliation to your curriculum." Hermione thought about it and nodded. "And, hey, if your potions grade starts to slip, just withhold from him. That'll bring him around." Ginny smiled devilishly.

Hermione laughed and shook her head.

SS/HG

When Hermione reached the fireplace of Snape's office, she stared at it for a while. It was cold and dark in his office, but she knew what was waiting for her behind the fireplace. She didn't know if she could go through with it. It hadn't felt as frightening earlier today but it now felt more real. She stared at the ashes that were slowly dying, but still had red hot pieces that clung to their life. She knew she had to do this and she knew he wasn't thrilled about it either.

Hermione summoned her courage that put her into Gryffindor in the first place and murmured, "Fifteen days." She watched the fireplace swing back to reveal the rooms she was slowly growing more accustomed to. She tentatively walked through to see Snape sitting on the couch in front of the fire reading. She walked around the couch to sit on the opposite end and wait for him to finish his chapter. She stared at the flickering flame while she waited then looked at him when he closed the book.

Snape looked at her curled up on the opposite side of the couch, like she didn't want to get too close to him. He got up and extended his hand to her. Hermione looked up at him, confusion evident on her face, before gently placing her tiny hand in his big one. Snape softly pulled her up to stand in front of him, not letting her hand go once she was standing. He looked into her deep, amber eyes and saw her fear pass through them before seeing a determined resolve flash in her eyes. Hermione stared into her professor's dark eyes and saw his regret and guilt. She wanted to tell him that it wasn't his fault and she would never blame him, but the words wouldn't form correctly. Her other hand softly touched his arm before she stood on her tip toes and kissed him. He was stiff and unmoving before he loosened and started to kiss her back. He bent down so he could press his more firmly to hers. His hand that wasn't holding her other hand gripped her hip and pulled her to him. Her hand tightened on his arm as she tilted her head and opened her mouth to his tongue. He laced his fingers through hers and slid his tongue into her mouth. Hermione gasped at the sensation and pressed her body to his hard chest. He freed their entwined hands and slid his hand up her arm to her neck, his thumb pressing on her jaw tilting her head up more. Her hand rested on his chest and she felt buttons under her fingers. She wasn't sure if she should, but she began to unbutton his outer coat. It had hundreds of tiny buttons that she was quickly sliding through their holes to expose her to a white dress shirt underneath with more buttons. She felt his hand on her hip tighten then his thumb started to gently move in small circles, coaxing her on. She was now unbuttoning with both of her hands and trying to stay as close to him as possible. Once she had freed the buttons of his outer coat she slid her hands under it to his shoulders and pushed it off of him. He shook it from his arms and started to kiss down her neck. She started on his white shirt getting the top two buttons freed from their holes, before he stopped her. He pulled away from her and looked down into her eyes.

Snape saw the confusion in her eyes and started to back her towards the bed. The backs of her knees hit the edge of the bed and Snape started to kiss her again. He unbuttoned his shirt and threw it to the floor then leaned into her making her sit on the edge of the bed. She pushed herself back and lay down. He was leaning over her and felt the uneasiness in her body. He slid his hand under her sweater and gripped her small rib cage. Her hands slid down his chest to his belt. Her tiny fingers unbuckled it and then unbuttoned his pants. She mentally reminded herself to count how many buttons he wears next time. His hands slid her sweater up over her head and threw it to the ground with his own shirt. He unzipped her skirt and slid it down her thighs so she could kick it off. She toed her heels off and they landed with a clunk on the ground. His shoes followed with a louder thump on the floor. His hands found the clasp of her bra and pulled it off her throwing it aside. She had an impulse to cover her breasts, but made herself keep her hands on his lower abdomen. She pushed his pants down his legs and then slid her hands back up to his chest.

Snape wandlessly put the fire out, casting the room into darkness. He knew she was uncomfortable and, hell, he was too. He pushed his boxer briefs down and then her lacy underwear. Hermione felt his hard length against her thigh and tensed. He was huge, he would never fit, she was sure of it. He felt her tense and started to kiss her neck again to get her to relax. She sighed as his hands started to make small, light circles on her skin causing goose bumps to rise.

When he was sure she was relaxed he whispered in her ear, "Are you ready?"

Hermione wasn't sure if she'd ever be ready. She bit her lip and looked to where she thought his eyes would be before breathlessly whispering, "Yes."

His hips thrust forward and his member slid slowly inside of her. Hermione squirmed under him trying to adjust to his size. The only person she had ever had sex with was Ron and he was nowhere near as big and Snape. She pushed the awkward thought of her first time out of her head and concentrated on her breathing. It hurt almost as much as the first time, Hermione clenched her teeth and road out the pain. Once he was completely inside, he stopped moving, letting her adjust. Hermione's hands were gripping his biceps rather hard.

Hermione started to slowly move her hips to let him know he could move. Snape pulled almost all the way out before slowly sliding back in. Hermione let him go slowly for a while before twisting her hips making his breath catch. He shakily let out his breath and she could tell he was looking down at her. Her hands tightened on his biceps before slacking again. Snape was surprised. She wanted him to go harder? He didn't take her for that kind of person. He stared down at her for several seconds before slamming into her. Hermione's breath caught and she made a small whining noise. Her fingers dug into his arms and her breasts pushed into his chest. He could feel her hard nipples against his skin. He slowly pulled out to slam into her again. She rolled her hips making him grunt. So she liked it hard, did she? Snape started to go faster, almost plowing her into the bed. Hermione dug her fingers into his arms and threw her head back. He rolled his hips making her gasp and shutter. His hand slid between their bodies and his middle finger slid down to her wet folds. His long finger rubbed and circled her making her moan and gasp into his mouth. Hermione couldn't take much more and threw her head back, her eyes flying open. She moaned and dug her fingernails into his skin, drawing blood. He licked her neck as she moaned then tensed as his body released into her. His thrusts were quicker and more sporadic. Hermione thrashed under him as he pounded into her.

Hermione slowly came down from her high and Snape rolled off of her landing on his back. Their breathing was heavy and she felt like her body was made of lead. Snape pulled the covers over them and turned away. Hermione stared into the inky blackness of the room. Did she really just do that with her professor? She pushed her thoughts away and closed her eyes letting sleep overtake her sated mind.

SS/HG

Snape wouldn't look at her. It had been two days and he had made himself scarce even though it was the weekend. He came back to their rooms late at night and laid stiffly on the edge of the bed as far away as he could get from her. Hermione stayed in their rooms doing research and homework and reading to occupy her rampant thoughts. Had she done something wrong? Was he angry because she wasn't good? Hermione slammed her book and her papers went flying in all sorts of directions. She swore and started to gather them into piles and place them back by the couch. As she crawled around on the floor, she found a folded piece of paper wedged in between books that were stacked at least four feet high against the wall. She pulled it out and unfolded it. She scanned the paper, recognizing Dumbledore's handwriting instantly.

_It's only fifteen days, Severus._

What was that supposed to mean? Hermione remembered his password into his private chambers was also fifteen days. It obviously meant something, but what? She heard footsteps outside the door and quickly shoved the piece of paper into her pocket. The door swung open and Snape walked in. He stopped short when he saw her. He looked uncomfortable and quickly started walking towards the bathroom. Hermione jumped to her feet and caught his arm. She saw him flinch as he turned towards her looking anywhere but at her. Hermione stared at his eyes willing him to look at her.

"Look at me!" She said angrily.

Snape's eyes shifted to hers looking almost pleadingly at her.

His look caught her off guard and made her worried. "What's wrong?"

Snape hissed and grabbed his left arm, bending over it. Hermione fought his arm from his grip and pushed the long sleeves of his teaching robes up his arm. The dark mark stood out starkly against his pale skin. It looked like it was writhing just under the surface of skin. She looked into his dark eyes and saw the same pleading look. Snape grabbed her arm and apparated.

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A/N: I so enjoy cliff hangers, don't you? ;) And what's with this "fifteen days" thing? I suppose you will have to keep reading to find out!

I hope you enjoyed! Please review!


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: Hello everyone. I'm sorry to say this, but I've been having conflicting thoughts as to whether I should continue to post this story. I've finished it and I'm not sure how it will be taken by the public, which is making me second guess my decision. I'm going to look over it again and see what my beta thinks before I post much more. I really don't want to stop, but we'll see. There have been six or seven stories that have this same kind of plot and they have either been taken very well or very bad so that's whats making me a bit uneasy.

Anyway, this is the point in the story where everything gets pretty dark. The chapters are also going to be shorter than the previous, but I hope you understand why.

Everything belongs to J.K. Rowling. (And please remember that since I am not her, all characters are going to be a bit OOC.)

Special thanks to SnapesTwin for corrections

Please read and review!

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**Chapter Six **

Hermione felt the air being pushed from her lungs as she hurtled through space. The pressure on her body and lungs was nothing compared to the pressure of Snape's grip on her arm. The spinning abruptly stopped and she fell with a crack on her knees.

Hermione quickly stood up and was suddenly grabbed by her arms. Huge black hooded figures gripped her biceps, pulling her back. Hermione fought against their iron-like grips, but didn't manage any progress. They pulled her farther and farther down a long, stone hall until they threw her backwards and her back hit a hard stone wall. The air was again pushed from her lungs and her eyes welled with tears. She saw a heavy wooden door close her into a small cell.

She lunged at the door kicking and screaming. Her nails started to bleed as she clawed at the door. Hermione threw her weight at the door over and over again. Pain seared up her arm and neck and into her back, but she refused to acknowledge it. She banged her fists against the door and screamed for what seemed like hours until her throat felt raw and she couldn't make any noise. She slid down the door and felt hot tears pool in her eyes before falling uselessly to the stone floor.

Hermione crawled over to a small, dirty mattress pushed against the wall and curled herself into a ball, letting the tears slowly run down her cheeks.

SS/HG

It had been early in the morning when Snape had come back to their room. There were no windows to see any signs of morning, but she guessed it was late in the morning. Hermione looked around the small cell. It was dirty and smelled horribly. There were small carved lines on the wall above the mattress. They looked like tally marks that had been etched in with a shaky hand near the end. Hermione saw there was dried blood on the walls that looked like it had been splattered then left to run morbidly down and dry.

She looked at her fingers. There was dried blood and rotted wood under her long nails from clawing at the door earlier. She could tell her mascara had run down with her tears. She angrily scrubbed at her skin, trying to erase any evidence of her earlier melt down.

SS/HG

She heard footsteps drawing near the door and shot up to her feet. The door swung open and hit the wall behind it. A tall man with long brown hair pulled back walked in and slammed the door shut. His brown eyes looked a bit crazed as he smiled at her.

"Welcome, my sweet, how was your first night?"

"Where am I?" Hermione growled.

"Oh, no need to be rude." He chided mockingly. "Isn't it obvious where you are?"

"Where is Professor Snape?"

"Why, he's waiting for you." He said.

Hermione remained silent. She stared at him, trying to stay as far back from him as possible, which was hard in the tiny cell.

"I have a proposition for you." He said, dropping the innocent tone. "Tell me what I need to know, and you can go."

He waited for a reaction from her, but she stayed quiet.

"Talkative one aren't you? I'll also let you in on a little secret. Every decision you make, costs your beloved husband. I'll let you think about that for a bit. I'll let you know how he is when I come back."

"Wait!" She said as he walked away. The man stopped and waited. "What are you going to do to him?"

He looked over his shoulder at her with a smirk before opening the door then shutting it behind himself. She heard magic sealing the door then his footsteps slowly grow faint.

Hermione stared at the door until her eyes hurt. What were they going to do to him? Where they doing it right now? She listened for any noise that could be coming from Snape, but it was frustratingly quiet. She couldn't just stand around when something was happening to him because of her. Hermione moved closer to the door and looked at the hinges. Maybe if she could get the door from its hinges then… then what? The door was magically sealed. It wouldn't matter even if she did manage to get it from its hinges, the magic would seal it to the frame. Hermione let a frustrated sigh and sat down on the mattress. He was having who knows what done to him and there was nothing she could do about it, but sit around and wait.

SS/HG

Hermione was experiencing a bit of a problem. A rather large problem, actually. She really had to pee. She got up from the mattress and started pounding on the door. She voiced her problem, but no one came. She tried several more times before giving up. What was she supposed to do? She looked around the room, but saw nothing except her mattress. Hermione sighed and lay back down on her mattress. She tried to go over her homework in her head, but the urge kept pulling her thoughts from arithmancy to using the bathroom. Hermione groaned and sat up looking around the room like she expected a toilet to pop out of thin air. She then noticed a reasonably large crack in the stone in the corner farthest from the mattress. Was she really lowering herself to this? Yes. She decided. This was the only way she could see.

Hermione got up and pulled her underwear and jeans down. She squatted over the crack and instantly the pressure eased. She now understood why the cell smelled.

SS/HG

Hermione looked up as a bare bulb lit outside of her cell in the corridor. She assumed it meant it was now dark outside, though she couldn't see to be sure.

She walked over to the door and looked back at the tallies carved into the stone above the mattress. It wasn't a bad thing to do. It may keep her sane if she knew how many days she had been down here, although she was sure the Order would find her before then. They were probably planning the best way to rescue her right now. She looked back to the tallies in the wall and tried to count how many there were, but they were so shaky and muddled towards the end that she couldn't tell one from the other. Hermione looked back to the door and then to her nails. The door had a soft layer of rotting wood on top that had come easily off earlier today. She pressed her nail to it and dragged it down. A small line appeared. Hermione clawed it until a distinct line appeared in the wood marking her first day.

She slowly moved back to the mattress and lay down. She stared at the ceiling and silently hoped that whatever was done to her professor had been worth her silence.

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A/N: Alright so how was this chapter? You're reviews are critical in my decision, so if you want me to continue, please tell me. Hope you enjoyed. Please review.


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: Hello everyone. I am still debating, but I am thinking of changing most of the later chapters instead of not continuing to post. Thank you for all of your support, by the way. I wasn't expecting it, so it meant a lot to me.

There will be twenty-two chapters in this story, so, yes, it is quite lengthy. I promise a lighter, happier sequel, though.

Again, if you don't like dark stories, this is definitely not for you. It contains dark themes, explicit scenes, violence, language, and adult content. Please do not read if under eighteen.

Everything belongs to J.K. Rowling.

Thank you to my beta SnapesTwin.

Please let me know what you think by reviewing after finishing reading! I love you all that have reviewed, it means the world to me!

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**Chapter Seven **

Hermione's eyes didn't want to open when she awoke the next morning. They felt puffy and irritated like she had just cried for the majority of the previous day, which she had. It was dark in the cell, but the light was off in the hall so she took that as she had slept into the next day. She let her head fall to the side then instantly regretted it. Hot pain shot up her neck and she grimaced and looked back up to the ceiling. Everything was still hurting from the night she had spent on the couch. She had wished she could have been with Harry and Ron and away from Professor Snape, but now all she wanted to do was be with him. She wanted to make sure he was okay and that whatever they had done to him, wasn't as horrible as her mind was making it out to be.

Her stomach made a loud gurgling noise and she closed her eyes. She was really wishing she had had a very large breakfast yesterday morning. Her stomach made another noise and she flipped over hoping the mattress would muffle the sound.

Hermione ran her fingers through her messy, greasy hair. They were caught in knots almost instantly, but she fruitlessly kept pulling them through. She looked at her hands through the dim lighting of the cell to see many strands of her curly, brown hair had been pulled out in the process of finger brushing it. She painfully ran her fingers through her hair again and again until she felt she had done her best to tame it. She had a small pile of strands that had come out and she brushed them away from her mattress to the far wall of the cell.

Her mouth was dry and she had a bad taste in it. She mourned the lack of her toothbrush before pushing the thought out of her mind. She was a captive of the death eaters and all she could think about was her toothbrush. Some kind of soldier she was turning out to be. But she wasn't meant to be a soldier. She hadn't signed on to this when she had befriended Harry. She missed her parents and her bed and her life. Hermione tried to push her thoughts of pity from her head. What she needed to be thinking about was a way to escape.

Hermione pushed her aching body from the mattress and slowly walked around the cell. She pushed on the walls, hoping for a stone that was broken that she could move, but she couldn't find any. She looked around the floor for a hole, but even if she did find one, she didn't know what she would do with it. She had heard in movies and stories that prisoners would use a spoon to dig their way out, but she knew that was unrealistic. She found herself staring at the door again like she expected it to suddenly fly open and she could run to safety. Even that scenario was flawed because she knew she would try to find Snape which would get her caught and probably killed. She was too short to see out of the barred cut out in the door when she was this close to it. There was nothing she could use to lift herself up with, so trying to see if there was a guard she could talk to was ruled out as well.

Hermione felt a suffocating feeling of hopelessness. She started to breathe faster and the walls felt like they were closing in on her. She was hyperventilating and she couldn't concentrate enough to calm herself. She looked wildly around, but nothing would help. Tears started streaming down her face as the lack of oxygen took over her. She felt lightheaded and her body was shaking uncontrollably now. She stumbled to the mattress and lay down fighting for air. Black spots were clouding her vision now and she could hear the blood rushing in her ears. Her stomach heaved and she threw up what little contents she had had in it on the floor next to the mattress. Her hands were shaking and she closed her eyes in one last attempt to regulate her breathing. The world suddenly went black as her body hit the mattress.

SS/HG

When she woke up the light in the hall was on, swinging slightly making the shadows in the cell more ominous than before. Her head was pounding with a headache and she groaned, putting her hand to it. She couldn't arrange her thoughts through the haze of pain so she closed her eyes again and tried to fall asleep.

She had almost managed falling asleep when the door swung open with a bang against the wall. Hermione jumped to her feet and immediately regretted it as her head swam and pounded in protest. The man from the day before came in with two other men behind him. He shut the door then looked at her. Hermione was in the middle of the cell, watching him through narrowed eyes.

"Hello, sweet, did you miss me?"

Hermione didn't say anything to him.

"I promised I'd be back. I'm sure you'd like to hear how the good professor is doing?"

Hermione stayed silent, but he saw her eyes become more alert at the mention of Snape.

He smirked. "That one is a stubborn one, isn't he? Wouldn't say a thing. It'll be fun breaking him." He sneered.

Hermione felt a huge swell of pride and hope in her chest when he told her Snape hadn't said anything to them.

"Are you stubborn too?"

Hermione kept her eyes trained on him as he circled closer to her.

"I guess we'll find out." He said. He stopped behind her and pushed her hair from her shoulder. His mouth was barely touching her ear, but she could smell his putrid breath when he spoke to her. "He didn't say a thing, even when we started telling him what we were going to do to you. You see, my sweet, everyone has a price. Now we know it isn't you. Do you know what your price is, sweet?" He asked. His hot breath on her neck and ear made her want to throw up again, but she smashed it down.

She could feel his smirk on her skin. She kept her eyes on a spot on the door and willed her mind to stay blank. He was just saying these things to make her break.

He left her and walked to his guards. "Hold her."

The big men started to approach her. Hermione started to panic. She backed up until she hit the wall, looking wildly around the cell for a way to escape. She found nothing that she hadn't seen before. The big men kept advancing on her until their hands gripped her arms. They pulled her from the imaginary safety of the wall and dragged her out into the middle of the cell once again. She struggled against them, but it didn't make a difference. The man started to approach her and Hermione started pulling and kicking as much as possible. She saw the glint in his eyes at her struggle. Her heart was racing with every step he took towards her. She saw something glinting in his hand and let out a gut wrenching scream that echoed around the cell and hall.

The man laughed mockingly at her. He was now only a foot away holding the knife at stomach level. All she could think about was the knife being shoved into her stomach and the blinding pain it would cause. "Tell us what we want to know, and you can go. Or we can continue. The choice is yours."

Hermione's eyes were wild and for a moment, she let herself believe they actually would let her go if she told them. Then her mind seemed to gain some of its logic back and she remembered that they would never let her go, not at this point. The only thing she could look forward to if she did tell them was a quick death.

She calmed herself and stopped pulling on the guards. She met his brown eyes and clenched her jaw.

He sighed. "It would have been easier if you had cooperated." He said in a fake sad tone. His eyes glinted as he looked over her body. "But this is so much more fun."

The knife flashed out and cut a deep gauge in her cheek. She felt the blood start to slide down her cheek and repressed a cry. He drew the knife slowly across her chest from her shoulder to above her left breast. Hermione saw the blood run down her skin and pool in her bra and soak into her sweater. This was one of her favorite sweaters and was a little upset that it now had a huge cut through it and was stained with blood then she reminded herself why it was in this condition and thoughts of her ruined sweater left her mind. He drew the knife across her stomach and pressed it deeper than the last two. Then he went behind her and waited. Hermione braced herself for the white hot pain of the knife, her body shaking a little in scared anticipation.

The knife was slashed across her back in quick succession until it felt like she didn't have any skin left. She was crying outright now, sobs shaking her body as she slumped over in the guards' grip. Her head felt lightheaded again. She was beginning to grow accustomed to it which made her uneasy. Is this how the rest of her life was going to be? Tortured and left to pass out alone until she awoke and they could start over again? She grimly thought that she probably didn't have enough time left for it to become a habitual routine.

After several more cuts pressed into her skin, the guards threw her to the floor. The man sneered above her. "Is it really worth this?"

They left slamming the doors behind themselves and leaving her to pass out alone on the cold stone floor.

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A/N: What did you think? Please please please review!


	8. Chapter 8

A/N: Hello everyone! Thank you for all the reviews! I'm really glad you are liking it.

I decided to make this chapter a bit lighter than the last. These chapters are also going to be shorter than the first few and I hope you will understand why. Please check the warnings I posted in previous chapters because they apply to all later chapters. Mature audiences only. I hope you enjoy it! Let me know by reviewing, please!

Thank you to SnapesTwin who is my beta for this chapter

Everything belongs to J.K. Rowling

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**Chapter Eight**

Hermione didn't want to wake the next day. Her body stung and ached because of the awkward position she had passed out in. She slowly opened her eyes, her fuzzy vision focusing on a crack in the wall. She tried to sit up but when she started to push up on her arms, pain surged through her body. It felt like her skin was trying to separate itself when she moved, especially on her back. She cried out at the intense sting then slowly began to remember what had happened to her yesterday. She lifted her head to look at her torn and bloodied sweater that had stuck into the shallow cuts when the blood had dried. She looked over to the mattress and debated whether moving was worth the pain.

Hermione pulled the mattress closer to herself before rolling onto it. The cuts on her stomach protested her laying on them, but there were more and deeper ones on her back that needed the relief more. She was panting and shaking in a cold sweat from the effort, but it had been worth it. The mattress was a lot softer than the stone floor had been.

She looked at the spot she had been lying on and saw a pool of dark red blood had dried where she had been. She felt tears forming and swallowed thickly. The last thing she needed to do was cry. She was dizzy once again and her stomach was angrily growling at her. From lack of food or nausea she couldn't tell, but she did her best to ignore it.

She looked at the door and saw her single line carved into it. She had been here for two days already, hadn't she? She tried to remember back to the first day. Yes she had had horrible nightmares the first night of Professor Snape and the second night was last night. She needed to mark her third day of being here, but she knew she was too weak yet. She looked up at the tallies above the mattress and understood why they were there. The person who had marked them must have been tortured as well and knew that moving to the door every day would be difficult. But how did the person carve it into the stone? Hermione stared at the marks to take her mind away from her current position. She imagined that the person had fought against its captors and escaped and had made it back to its family. She imagined its captors being sent to Azkaban with a life sentence and never escaping. She imagined herself having the same future. She imagined going back to Harry and Ron and the Order and her family and putting the people that were responsible for this to justice. She fed her wishful thoughts, staring at the wall without really seeing it for a while. The Order would save them and she would go back to Hogwarts and see Harry and Ron and her friends and her parents would be waiting for her at home. She just had to be patient.

SS/HG

Hermione was pulled from her thoughts at the sound of the door to the cell opening. She was too weak to get up so she lay there, helpless. The door opened a crack before a skinny man came in. Hermione had never seen him before and he didn't look like the type to become a death eater. He carried a tray over to her and set it down beside her on the floor. His blue eyes met hers as he knelt over her. She saw there were pieces of cloth and a bowl of water on the tray. He was going to care for her? Why would the death eaters want to do that?

She watched him reach for the cloth and dip it in the bowl before ringing it out and gently touching her sensitive skin. "Why are you doing this?" Her scratchy voice asked. She sounded like she had been screaming for hours.

The man ignored her, continuing to blot the blood from her cuts.

Hermione's brow furrowed. "Why are they making you do this?" She tried again.

The man's eyes flickered to hers before going back to work.

Hermione was becoming angry. Why wasn't he answering her? He could obviously hear her. The water seeping into her cuts was making it difficult for her to concentrate. He rinsed the cloth out in the water before blotting it on her back again. He lifted her hair from her shoulders and started to wash the cuts on her upper back. Hermione waited for the haze of pain to lessen before focusing back on him. "Answer me!" she shouted angrily at him.

He looked down at her a little annoyed. His look reminded her of Snape's when she asked questions during class. Snape!

"Where is Professor Snape?"

She was answered with silence.

"Severus Snape. He was brought on the same day as I. Do you know who I am talking about?"

He gave her another irritated look before pushing on her arm. Hermione protested as he pushed and pulled on her making her flip over so her stomach showed. He ripped her sweater open and pushed it apart exposing her torso. Hermione started screaming at him and thrashing about. He ignored her and pushed a finger into one of her cuts making her scream. She glared at him though her tears, but stopped thrashing. He picked up a new cloth and dipped it into the water, bringing it back to her skin. He washed the cut that stretched from her shoulder to her chest and made his way down her torso. There weren't as many on her stomach as there had been on her back so he was done relatively quickly. He stood up and picked up the tray and left the cell, the door swinging shut behind him. She heard the magical seal being replaced on the door then his footsteps down the hall.

She assessed her cuts after he left. Her skin felt numb where he had washed it and smelled like mint. She instantly recognized the potion that had been added to the water. It was supposed to heal her completely and it would take an hour before her cuts started to close up.

Hermione sighed and looked over. He had left the bowl on the floor beside her. It was still almost full of water. Her mouth started to water at the sight. It was murky and red from the blood and obviously had a potion in it, but she was desperate at this point. Her hand reached out like she had no control over it and brought the bowl to her cracked lips. She greedily gulped the entire bowl down, basking in the bliss of the wet liquid as it slid down her dry throat. It tasted coppery and minty, but she honestly couldn't care less at the moment. She licked the bottom of bowl hopping to get a few more drops before putting it down sadly.

She stared at the ceiling and waited as her skin tingled and pulled itself back together slowly. When she looked an hour or so later the cuts had disappeared. Tangled lines of scars crossed each other on her skin, but at least they had stopped stinging. She tentatively traced the lines with her finger and sighed a breath of relief. If the man hadn't healed her, they would have become infected and she would have probably died from them. And she was thankful he had been so careless as to leave the bowl in the cell. Or was that on purpose? No, he was working for death eaters. There was no way he would think to leave that for her.

Hermione slowly sat up and walked over to the door. She made two deep lines in it marking her third day. It had only been three days but she felt like she had been here for an eternity. She was beginning to refer to the small cell as her own in her thoughts which scared her a bit. It wasn't _her_ cell, it was just _a _cell.

Her attention flicked to the light in the hall that suddenly clicked on marking night had come. She walked back to her mattress and started to finger comb her hair again. It was matted with dried blood, her own blood. The thought made her shiver in disgust and fear as she pulled strands of her hair apart that had dried together.

There was nothing she could do about her sweater. She looked down at it. It was now torn completely down the middle, so she had to hold it closed, and it was stiff from the dried blood. She sighed and lay back on her mattress. No it was not _her_ mattress. It was _a_ mattress that held no other purpose than giving her a place to sleep for the moment.

She grimly stared at the ceiling dreading what was to happen to her tomorrow.

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A/N: How did you like it? I'll warn you all now that the next chapter will be darker than chapter 7, so if you have been forewarned.

Special thanks to reviewers for taking time out of their day for me. Have I mentioned I love you guys?

Please review!


	9. Chapter 9

A/N: Hello everyone! I'm sorry I've recieved so many PMs telling me you don't like the story, but I did warn that it was a dark story. I appreciate all reviews and PMs, angry and otherwise.

This chapter contains **Mature Content** so know what you can handle!

Thank you to SnapesTwin for betareading this chapter

Everything belongs to J.K. Rowling

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**Chapter Nine **

Hermione walked into Snape's private rooms and watched Snape. He was reading peacefully on the bed and hadn't moved other than to turn the page since she had left this morning. She padded over to him in her bare feet and sat beside him on the bed. His eyes darted back and forth across the page for several moments before he closed the book and set it on the bed beside him. His dark eyes met hers and she blushed looking away. His mouth pulled into a smile before he rolled onto his side and leaned over her. She giggled and reached up to kiss him. Her hands tangled into his hair as his lips possessively claimed her own. His tongue darted into her mouth, sensuously moving against her own causing her to moan into his mouth and press her chest against his. She could feel his smile on her lips before he started to kiss down her jaw to the nape of her neck. His tongue circled her pulse point before his teeth sunk into the delicate skin. His lips soothed the sting as he sucked on her neck.

"I love you, Severus."

Hermione's eyes opened and were met with the dim lighting of her cell. She groaned and sat up looking around. She wished she was actually living that dream instead of stuck here, slowly waiting to die. _No, slowly waiting to be saved_. Her mind corrected. Her body didn't ache today which was a pleasant change. She cracked her neck and knuckles before looking around the cell. The dried pool of blood was still on the floor as well as the bowl from yesterday. She grimaced at the memories that came to mind from the previous days, but pushed them away. She didn't want to dwell on unpleasant thoughts for too long.

She remembered the dream which made her miss Snape. Where was he? Was he okay? He had to be. She didn't know if she could handle this if he wasn't. Was he near her? Did they have a muffliato spell on her cell door which made it so he couldn't hear her? She had too many unanswered questions, her least favorite kind.

She looked at her nails. She had been digging them into his skin not five days ago. Of course that hadn't been enjoyable at the time, but she would take anything over being here. Even having sex with her professor.

She sighed and looked around her cell. It was bare and dirty, nothing had changed. Not that she had expected it to, she was just hoping for something to think about other than her current situation or her professor. She hopped someone had remembered to feed Crookshanks or at least let him out to find food on his own. Now she was worrying about whether her cat was being properly fed when she hadn't had food in days.

She looked down at herself. She looked paler than she had remembered. Her ribs stuck out more than they had before as well. Her thighs weren't as thick as before and her jeans seemed looser. It seemed if she wasn't thinking about her past few days or her professor she was thinking about food. She had been trying to force the thoughts out of her wondering mind, but they always seemed to come back. Her stomach rarely made noise anymore which she knew was a bad sign. It took a lot more energy than she had remembered to move and swallowing was becoming painful. Her lips felt dry and cracked and her body seemed to shake constantly. She wasn't sure if it was from the cold or from something else.

She shook her head, trying to drive the grim thoughts out of her mind. The Order was coming for her, she just had to be patient.

SS/HG

Hermione stood up on shaky legs when the door was flung open, smashing into the wall. She jumped at the loud noise. She hadn't heard any noise other than the ones she made for days now. Three death eaters walked into her cell. The leader was the same one from before.

He looked at the floor before storming over to her. "You dare dirty the floor with your filthy blood, mudblood?"

His hand cracked against her cheek. She fell to the floor and could taste blood already pooling in her mouth. She slowly got to her feet and looked him in the eye.

He smirked at her. "Are you ready to tell me what I want to know?"

Hermione stayed silent.

She saw his jaw clench. "You'll want to tell me now. Trust me, you won't like your other option."

Hermione spat the blood that had been gathering in her mouth at him.

His eyes burned and his fists clenched. One of the other death eaters put a hand on his arm. He closed his eyes and took a breath before looking back at Hermione.

She would have rather he hit her than calming himself.

He walked closer to her and her body betrayed her. She started violently shaking as he drew himself behind her, she could feel his breath on her skin like the day before. His hand suddenly grabbed her hair and yanked her head back.

Hermione cried out and he laughed. "You're going to wish you had told me when you had the chance."

He pulled hard on her hair as he stalked out the door and into the hall. She clawed at his hand and struggled against him as he pulled her through the halls.

She tripped and fell, he continued to drag her down the hall until he stopped and tuned back to her. "Get up!" He yelled.

Hermione stayed firmly on the floor which only angered him more.

His wand pressed against her temple and he muttered something under his breath before Hermione was knocked out.

SS/HG

Hermione awoke on a hard stone floor. Her body was shaking slightly as she let her head fall to the side. Her heart started to race as her eyes focused on the floor. This was not the stone floor of her cell. This was marble and shiny. She tried to sit up but was assaulted by the knowledge that she was naked on the cold floor. Her head was pounding painfully, once again, as she tried to remember what had happened.

"I think she's awake."

Hermione heard someone say. She heard footsteps approach her and tried to move away from the feet that she could now see moving closer to her.

A face appeared above her. It had brown hair and light eyes with a straight nose. "You awake now, mudblood?" He asked.

Hermione pushed to her feet and started to back away from the hoard of death eaters at the front of the room before she was stopped by a hard chest at her back. She spun around to meet the ice blue eyes of Lucius Malfoy. Hermione's eyes widened at his smirk. Her heart felt like it was going to pound out of her chest as she started to back away. She was trapped. The room was lined with death eaters and she was alone.

Hands grabbed her wrists and pulled them behind her back. Hermione pulled against them, but they were too strong. Tears started to trail down her cheeks as she fought uselessly against him. His hand gripped the back of her neck and tilted her head so she could feel his breath against her skin. "We heard you've been asking for your professor," Lucius' cold voice whispered in her ear. "so we, being the kind people that we are, will indulge you."

The crowd of death eaters at the front of the room parted to reveal Snape tied around the neck by invisible ropes being pulled in opposite directions by death eaters. His hands were tied behind his back and his chest was exposed. He had bleeding cuts, bruises, raised lines from a whip, and punctures on his body that made Hermione cry out. Snape's eyes suddenly opened and snapped to her. She could tell he was assessing her for damage before meeting her eyes with his. His look was intense as his eyes seared into her own.

Hermione was thrashing against Malfoy now, trying to get away from him. "Now, now. We granted you your wish. You got to see your beloved professor, now you must cooperate."

The death eaters led him about ten feet from her and forced him to his knees. Snape's eyes were still burning into hers and she saw him slightly move his head as if to say no.

Hermione stopped flailing against Malfoy. "Good girl." He sneered.

She didn't say anything, but kept staring into Snape's eyes. She felt Malfoy's hand slowly run up her thigh and her eyes grew wide. Snape kept his gaze steady with her own, trying to make her calm down. His hand rounded her hip and spread against her lower stomach, his other hand snaking around her waist to pull her against his chest.

Hermione felt something enter her mind before her vision went dark. Suddenly, she was back in her professor's bed chambers and he was behind her. His hand was spread against her lower abdomen and his left arm was around her waist holding her tightly to his chest. "Don't make a noise, Miss. Granger." Professor Snape's silky voice said into her ear. She felt his tongue slide up her neck slowly before his hand slowly moved down her stomach to her sex. Why was she naked, but he wasn't? His fingers started to lightly trace her lips before she was violently pulled from his bed chambers and into a marble room.

She gasped as she saw Snape clutching at the ropes around his neck. The death eaters were pulling their wands in different directions suffocating him. Hermione screamed. "Please! Stop! Please!" Tears were rolling down her cheeks now as she struggled against Malfoy. "Stop!" She screamed at the top of her lungs.

"Stop." Came Lucius' bored voice from behind her.

The death eaters slackened on the rope and Snape gasped and coughed as he caught his breath. Hermione was bent over Malfoy's arm sobbing as Lucius' hand continued to stoke her.

"Did you really think that I would let him give you a vision so you wouldn't have to remember this?" His voice purred in her ear.

A sob came from her that shook her body and she could feel his smirk on her skin. He pushed her to the floor. Her knees cracked on the floor and her cheek stung from the impact. He slowly paced until he was beside her. His foot came back to swing forward and land in her gut. The air was forced from her and she rolled onto her side. She watched his feet slowly walk to her through the haze of her tears. His foot pressed her shoulder back to the floor so she rolled onto her back and kept pressing. Pain was shooting up her arm making her gasp as he leaned his weight into it until it cracked. Tears were flowing freely down her cheeks again as she heard her shoulder break.

Malfoy slowly squatted to her level so he could look into her eyes. He smiled before pouncing on her body. Hermione screamed and tried to push him away with her good arm as he pinned her body with his own. Hermione felt his hand at his trousers which made her scream louder, if that was possible. His knees forced her legs apart. "Tell me what I want to know, Hermione!" He yelled over her high pitched screams. "Better yet, keep screaming so I can do this for as long as I wish." His hard length plowed into her making her scream out in pain. He rammed into her again and again making her slide across the floor. She was sobbing now as she squeezed her eyes tight so she couldn't see his eyes. She felt his long hair on her skin with every thrust. She could hear laughter and people shouting insults as they watched. His hands dug into her arms holding them to the floor. He bit into her neck drawing blood as she sobbed. Malfoy suddenly stiffened and groaned as she felt liquid spurt inside of her. He panted above her catching his breath before he pulled out and stood up.

Hermione found Snape's eyes as she lay on the cold floor, unable to move. He had obviously been pulling against the ropes because their shimmering outline was once again taught and cutting off his air supply. The death eaters let up on their ropes when Malfoy barked at them.

Malfoy's foot kicked her side In the ribs before he paced away. "Who's next?"

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A/N: So what did you think? It really killed me to write this chapter. I went back and forth on who should be the one to do it and decided Lucius was the only good choice, even though I do so love him.

Hope you enjoyed! Please review!


	10. Chapter 10

A/N: So this is the next chapter. It's pretty tame compared to some of the previous so I hope you enjoy the reprieve while you can. :) I really enjoyed your reviews and found them quite reassuring which was exactly what I needed so thank you for sharing your thoughts! This chapter is relatively short so I'll apologize for that, but Snape finally enters the story once again so you can all rest assured.

Thank you to my beta reader SnapesTwin

Everything belongs to J.K. Rowling

* * *

**Chapter Ten **

Snape was lead back into a small cell that wasn't his. The death eaters threw Hermione to the ground and slammed the heavy wooden door and sealed it with magic. He knealt beside her broken body and started to do his best to heal her. His hands hovered over her shoulder healing the bruises and cuts and broken bones that had damaged it before moving over the rest of her body, slowly healing as much as he could without his wand. She had been knocked out at one point which he was silently grateful for. The less she remembered from this ordeal, the better. He managed to set most of the broken bones, but he couldn't fully heal them. The bruises he faded and the cuts he was able to pull together so they were no longer gaping and bleeding. He felt so useless to her. All he could do was watch as she was violated and beaten, as she screamed and tried to get away. She had looked at him at one point and he saw the energetic light of her life fade to a dull nothingness in her eyes.

He looked over to the dirty mattress on the floor then looked back to Hermione. She couldn't be left on the floor, but she shouldn't be moved either. He crouched over her before lifting her limp body into his arms and walking over to the mattress. He sat down, using the wall to support his body then laid her beside him. She shifted in her sleep and her small hand fisted his trouser leg. He looked at her skinny, long fingers that had blood and something he didn't know under the nails. His eyes roamed over her exposed body looking at the scars that intertwined in her skin. He felt rage boiling in his chest, but pushed it down. She had goose bumps and he wished he had something to give her for warmth. He looked around, but only saw stone. He noticed the large stain of blood on the ground not too far from the mattress and silently hoped it wasn't hers.

SS/HG

Hermione slowly woke up. Her head was swimming, but what else was new? She took a breath and shifted on the mattress noticing her hand was gripping something. She slowly opened her eyes and looked blearily to her outstretched arm and saw she was holding something black. She looked down and saw a foot. Her heart skipped a beat and she quickly sat up. She saw Snape who had been startled awake with her jerky movement. She threw herself at him and wrapped her arms around him. He tensed under her before relaxing and wrapping his arms around her torso and squishing her to his hard chest. She felt tears coming to her eyes and tried to push them back as his thumbs gently rubbed her skin. Her body ached and several places felt almost unbearable when his grip had tightened around her, but she didn't care. She had been sure that they were going to die in that room, and for a moment she had welcomed it. She thought about the sweet release of death as another death eater beat her. Then she looked to Professor Snape and saw the look in his eyes. She had been expecting to see pity, but his eyes were burning. She had never seen him look so angry before. That look had made her want to fight back.

She slowly released her iron-like grip on him. She backed away then saw his chest. It had at least twice as many marks on it than when she had first seen him. His neck was bright purple and there were rope burn marks on it. She felt tears forming in her eyes again and he reached out for her. She let him pull her to his chest. She curled up on his lap and nestled her head into his shoulder and let the tears stream down her cheeks silently. Her tears rolled onto his chest and washed away some of the blood from a newer cut. He wrapped his arms around her and stroked her hair and arm as she slowly cried herself to sleep.

SS/HG

Hermione woke up still wrapped in Professor Snape's arms. His head was tilted uncomfortably to the side as he slept and his mouth was open slightly. She had smeared blood on her arm, his or her own she wasn't sure. His linked hands were resting on her arm so she was unable to move. She was back in her own cell again which, frighteningly, made her feel safe, especially with Snape here. Which brought up the question: Why was he here? She was happy with him here, but she couldn't understand why the death eaters would allow that.

"I can hear your mind working." Snape's chest vibrated with his low voice.

Hermione looked up at him. "I was just thinking." She said.

Snape's eyes looked down at her as he adjusted. Hermione crawled off of him and sat beside him. She tried to cover as much of her nudity as possible as she drew her knees up to her chin. "About?"

Hermione looked up at him. "Why would they let you be here?" Hermione saw his eyebrow rise. "Not that I don't want you here, I do. I just don't know why they would allow it because it is something that I had wanted. Wouldn't they do more damage by separating us?"

"Not necessarily." He said after a moment of hesitation.

His answer seemed to frighten her more than him not answering would have. She looked down at her toes and thought about it before being interrupted by his low voice.

"When was the last time you've had food?" he asked. Her shoulder and collar bones stuck unnaturally out and her thighs looked like he could almost encircle one with a hand. Her hips poked out and her face looked sunken in and hallowed. Her skin had a sickly pallor to it that had to be from the loss of blood and being in the dark for days.

Hermione swallowed even though it hurt to do so. She looked over to the bowl. "A man was here two days ago to clean my wounds and he forgot a bowl full of water."

"Water isn't food."

Hermione looked up at him. "When was the last time you were fed?"

Snape looked uncomfortable. "Yesterday."

Hermione was shocked. Why did _he_ get food, but _she_ didn't. She felt a flush of anger and jealousy taint her thoughts before she pushed it away. "That's good."

Snape looked at her. She was dying and there was nothing he could do for her.

"What did they feed you?"

"I shouldn't tell you."

"Why not?"

"What good will it do? It will only make you hungrier."

"I haven't felt hungry in days now."

Snape looked at her. He knew what that meant and it was nothing good. "I'm going to get you food."

Hermione looked doubtfully at him. "And just how do you expect to do that?"

"Don't worry about it." He murmured.

* * *

A/N: Don't forget to review! All reviews are important and will be used for the betterment of my writing.


	11. Chapter 11

A/N: Hello everyone! This is a longer chapter, but doesn't have as much action as some of you want. I extend a trade of action for information to those of you who have been asking. I hope this chapter clears up some of the questions you have.

Thank you soooooooo much to the reviewers! Some of you have reviewed and PM'd me the sweetest messages ever and I just want to tell you how much I appreciate them. You are too kind. I appreciate all of your reviews and PM's, even the ones that tell me my writing sucks.

Thank you to SnapesTwin for beta reading this chapter.

Everything belongs to J.K. Rowling.

* * *

**Chapter Eleven**

They had sat in silence for several hours, thinking about different things. Hermione had been thinking about her friends and family… and food. She was still a little jaded that he had been fed not even one day ago when she had been left to starve in her cell.

"Name the ingredients for sleeping draught."

Hermione looked at him, confused. "What?"

"Name the ingredients for sleeping draught."

"Why?"

"Because I told you to."

Hermione made a face but started to list off the ingredients and the proper procedure for making it.

Snape nodded when she had finished.

They sat in silence again before she looked over to him. "Why did you grab me?"

"Pardon?"

"When we apparated. Why did you grab me?"

Snape took a breath. "I was ordered to bring you here. I didn't want to, but I had no choice."

Hermione nodded. She knew Voldemort would want her eventually, she had just thought it wouldn't have been so soon. "Why are you here?"

"What?"

"Why would Voldemort want you here? You're his most trusted death eater so why are you here?"

Snape looked at her for a while without saying anything. "They know about the Order and my part in it." He finally said.

Hermione gasped. They knew he is… or was a spy? "How?"

Snape sighed. "We have a traitor."

Hermione's heart leapt. Who sold out Snape? It had to be someone in the order, but who? She couldn't imagine anyone doing this. She had known most of the Order since she was eleven, they were like family to her.

"What do they want to know?"

"What do you mean?"

"They keep demanding I tell them what they want to know, but they won't tell me what it is."

"Mr. Potter and Mr. Weasley have gone missing from school. They have apparently left in search of something and they want to know what it is and where they are." Snape snorted and rolled his eyes. "Those idiots don't even know how to question properly."

Hermione smiled a little then it faded. She knew what they were looking for and knew they were in terrible danger if Voldemort was looking for them. She wished she could be there with them instead of in a cell with her husband/ professor.

Snape's dark eyes roamed over her small frame. She could tell that he was comparing what she used to look like to what she looked like now. She had tried to ignore the weight loss which had worked at first until she saw him. He still had muscle and his skin looked less transparent than hers. She had realized how sickly and weak she looked which made her feel even more helpless. She shied away from his gaze and ducked her eyes. She didn't even want to think about what he thought of her now when he hadn't liked what she looked like before.

"What's wrong?"

Hermione hid her eyes from him. "Nothing."

She knew the look he was giving her without seeing it. It was look she had seen countless times when someone was being and idiot in class or didn't know an obvious answer.

"It's nothing."

"What's nothing?"

"Honestly, professor, it's really not important."

"I think we can drop the formalities now, Hermione."

Hermione's eyes snapped to the wall opposite her. He had just said her first name. She couldn't remember any other time he had said it, at least not to her. She wanted to look at him, but refused to let him see the hurt in her eyes.

"Would you please tell me?"

Hermione knew he was making an effort for her when he said please. She felt her mouth move into a smile. It hurt her face and felt unnatural, but she couldn't stop herself. She started to giggle and then laugh and then she was rolling on the ground. Tears streamed down her face as she laughed. Her stomach hurt and the cuts burned as she laughed unable to stop. She looked at the ceiling as tears streamed down her cheeks. Her weak arms wrapped around herself as she gasped for air.

Then everything stopped being funny. She had laughed about her predicament and her worries over whether Snape of all people thought her attractive. Then as she thought about it more, it wasn't funny. She was dying and she knew she wouldn't last much longer without food and water. The tremors of laughter turned to body wracking sobs. The tears poured from her eyes as she let her emotions show to the one man she had never thought she would be here with. She had imagined if she were to be tortured it would be with Harry and Ron, not Professor Snape.

She took several deep breaths to calm herself after several minutes of crying before staring blankly at the ceiling. She could feel his eyes on her again, but she didn't care anymore. It was nothing he hadn't seen before.

"Better?"

Hermione's head fell to the side and her eyes slid to his looking dead and humorless.

"Would you care to explain what was so funny?"

She kept staring at him. After several minutes she answered. "I know I look awful and I know you didn't like how I looked before so I was thinking about how disgusting I must look to you now. It was funny because I wouldn't have cared a month ago what you thought of me and now I'm worrying about it. I suppose it doesn't sound funny right now, but it was at the time."

Her head rolled back so she could stare at the ceiling again.

Snape wasn't sure what he should do. "I think you're attractive."

"You don't need to lie to me. I know very well what I look like."

"I'm not lying to you."

"I look like what I am, dying."

"You will not die in here, Hermione." He said loudly causing her eyes to snap to his. "You are not going to die here." He said lowering his voice to barely above a whisper.

Hermione's eyes searched his. He was staring intently at her and she knew he really believed that she would live. It was too bad that she didn't believe that herself.

SS/HG

Hermione listened intently. She had thought she heard footsteps. She lay still as she listened and hoped that the noises were a part of her imagination. As they grew louder, she knew the noises were not a figment of her imagination. Her panicked eyes found Snape's and her breathing grew shallow. She couldn't handle anymore. She had been given a day to recover and that wasn't enough. She felt like she was going to be sick as the noises stopped in front of her cell door. She made a whimpering noise as the door was flung open to reveal three men, the leader was the man that usually came. His dark eyes roamed hungrily over her exposed and battered body. Hermione dragged her body painfully into a sitting position as he predatorily walked to her.

Snape's eyes watched the man's every move. He looked to Hermione who was staring defiantly up at him even though he knew she was too afraid to move. He watched her as she sat up and winced when she flinched from the pain that shot through her body.

"Looks like you've soiled the ground with your filthy blood again. When will you learn?" He sighed dramatically. "You'll have to be punished."

Hermione couldn't stop her eyes from widening in terror. What was he going to do to her this time?

"I hate having to do this to you, sweet, but its orders."

He drew his wand and pointed it at her. Green light shot from the tip illuminating the dark cell in an eerie glow. Hermione screamed out in pain as her body twisted unnaturally until she fell to the ground. Her head cracked against the hard floor and she felt the all too familiar nauseating pain radiate from her skull. The green light stopped as soon as it had come and her back fell from its arch to the floor. Her limbs relaxed from the instantaneous tension it went through every time she got the cruciatus. She worked to slow her breathing and to calm the waves of nausea. The edges of her vision were becoming fuzzy but she knew she heard someone shout stop just before the curse had stopped. The noises sounded far off and like she was underwater, but she could make out deep voices just before she passed out.

* * *

A/N: So how did you like this chapter? I thought I would liven up the plot a bit with a traitor :) What do you think of my decision? Who do you think it is?

Hope you enjoyed this chapter and I hope it cleared up some questions I've been getting.

Please review!


	12. Chapter 12

A/N: Hello everyone! This chapter is short so I apologize. I will also apologize ahead of time for the next chapter. I'll just remind you of the "calm before the storm" saying as it applies to this chapter as well. Don't be too mad at me though, not everything is as it seems.

I lost my beta at this chapter so from now on I will be doing this beta-less. I have reviewed it myself, but try to ignore some of the typos that you may find. Any constructive criticism is gladly welcomed!

Thank you to all my reviewers as your comments are what keep me writing.

Everything belongs to J.K. Rowling

* * *

**Chapter Twelve **

Hermione awoke to something warm wrapped around her. Her still asleep brain told her to go back to sleep, but something was saying she should wake up. Hermione pried her eyes open and felt something on her bare skin. She bolted up and looked at what was covering her. A grey robe was wrapped around her, its itchy wool fabric making her skin crawl when she moved. She examined the multitude of stains that covered it and decided it was probably best if she didn't examine too closely. A number was written on it, but she refused to acknowledge it.

Hermione looked around for Sn-Severus but something on the floor caught her eye. She stared at it wondering if her imagination was playing tricks on her or if it really was there. Hermione slowly and carefully walked over to the tray sitting in front of the wooden door. She was afraid that if she touched it, it would disappear so she examined it for several moments before finally touching it. It didn't disappear, it was real. Her mouth started to water at the sight of the four pieces of bread and the glass of water waiting so temptingly for her. She closed her eyes and audibly swallowed before turning around to look for Severus. She saw his still figure lying on the mattress, his front facing the wall. She should save some for him. _He's already had food, you haven't. Eat it all. _Her stomach screamed at her. Hermione looked back to the tray then to Severus then to the tray again.

Her feet seemed to move on their own toward Severus. She kneeled next to him and put her hand lightly on his shoulder. Severus shot from the mattress and had her wrists held in one hand quicker than she could defend herself. When he recognized her, he released her and ran a hand through his hair. Hermione looked at the tray on the opposite side of the cell then gave him a pleading look.

Severus followed her gaze to the tray on the floor before nodding his ascent.

"You should have some too-"

She was cut off by the glare he gave her. "Eat it."

Hermione hesitated for a moment, her conscience telling her no and her stomach demanding she eat it all. She gave him one more sad look before jumping to her feet and rushing over to the tray. She picked up the first piece of bread and stuffed it in her mouth. The spongy texture felt like the best thing in the world as it moved from one side of her mouth to the other. It hurt to swallow, but she managed. Her stomach gave a lurch as the food slid down. Hermione ate the next piece before picking up the glass and downing it in one gulp. Her mouth salivated as she ate the next piece, her stomach gargling as the foreign food invaded it. She slowed down on the final piece, savoring it. She had no idea when she would ever get food again so she took it as slow as possible. She bit tiny pieces off and let her brain remember the taste. She gave an unconscious moan as she ate piece after delicious piece.

"Good?"

Hermione's brown eyes snapped open to look at Severus. In her eating frenzy, she had forgotten about him. He was watching her intently, making her feel guilty that she had just stuffed her face in front of him when he had nothing. She looked at the ground ashamed of her behavior.

"Don't feel guilty. I've had food recently. You needed it more than I."

Hermione looked up at him and gave him a grateful look before walking over to sit next to him on the mattress. "Why did they do it?"

"You were going to die without food and that wasn't their intent."

"Why did they clothe me?"

Severus didn't answer immediately. "No idea."

"It's a bit odd, don't you think?"

Severus looked down at her. He never answered her, but kept looking at her. His dark brown eyes boring into her light ones.

Hermione was the first to look away. "I miss Hogwarts."

"You'll be back again soon."

"How can you be so sure?" Her eyes searched his.

"Because I just know."

SS/HG

Hermione had been staring at the same spot on the wall for hours. She wished she had a book to keep her mind occupied, although even though she had eaten earlier, the food seemed to make her even hungrier. Her stomach gave a loud growl, causing Severus to look at her stomach then at her with a raised eyebrow. Hermione blushed and looked away. Damn stomach! She had made a fool of herself enough as it was, she didn't need her organs causing her more embarrassment than necessary.

Hermione sighed and stood up. She felt Severus' eyes tracking her as she walked over to the door. She kneeled down in front of it and looked at the small lines she had made. She looked behind her at Severus.

"How long have we been here?"

Severus didn't answer immediately. "Seven days, I believe."

Hermione looked back at her lines. She dragged her nail through the rotted wood until seven tallies were counted. She ran her fingers over the lines feeling them. How long was she going to be here?

"What are you doing?"

"I'm marking how many days we've been here."

Hermione stood up and walked back over to the mattress. She was already tired of sitting on the disgusting thing and she had only been here for a week.

She sat down next to Severus and leaned against the cold stone of the wall. She imagined she was sitting in a warm bath back at Hogwarts. There would be candles and bubbles in her water. The water would be hot and soothing, releasing the stress of her days at school.

"What are you thinking about?"

Hermione's eyes opened, her fantasy ripped away by the reality of his voice. "How good a bath would feel right now."

Severus' expression looked relaxed as he stared at the wall. Hermione was sure he wasn't actually seeing the in front of him, though. "Yes it would."

* * *

A/N: So how did you like this chapter? I know it was eventless, but be patient. The next chapter should be posted shortly.

Please review!


	13. Chapter 13

A/N: Hello everyone! I'm really interested to know what you all will think about this chapter so please please please review! I got a new laptop so new chapters should come quicker than before.

A huge thank you to SnapesTwin for beta reading the rest of the story.

Everything belongs to J.K. Rowling

* * *

**Chapter Thirteen **

Hermione was awakened by the sound of footsteps coming down the hall towards their cell. There was a glow of light underneath the door from the hall signaling it was night. Had they slept all day? No they had been awake most of the previous night and had fallen asleep later that evening. Severus had his arm curled tightly around her waist holding her close to his chest. They always started out not even touching when they fell asleep, but every time she woke, the heavy weight of his arm was crushing her to his hard body.

The footsteps were growing louder as they came near. She started to untangle herself from him and sat up.

Severus' eyes snapped open. "What is it?"

Hermione could see the shadows of feet blocking the light from under the door. Severus saw it too and sat up. He stood with Hermione and pushed her behind him as the door was thrown open.

The leader came in with two other men flanking him who seemed to be hiding a fourth. Hermione peered around Severus trying to see the fourth man, but couldn't.

"Have you decided to tell me what I need to know?" the leader said.

Severus and Hermione remained silent.

"I thought not, which is why I brought something to help you along. Sirius?"

Sirius? The fourth set of feet moved out from behind the two men to stand beside the leader. Hermione's eyes traveled up from the shoes to a familiar pair of pale eyes. Hermione felt like she was going to be sick.

"Sirius?" Hermione's throat was dry and scratchy sounding, like she hadn't used it a long time.

"Hermione, let me explain before you-"

"How could you? Do you know what you've done? What have you told them? How could you do this to us?"

"Hermione-"

"How could you do this to us? To Harry? To James? To Dumbledore? Did you think of all the people you were going to hurt before you decided to betray us all? What will Lupin say? What do you think James would have said? You were his best friend! He trusted you! You were to keep Harry safe! Not sell him out to Voldemort!"

Everyone in the room besides Hermione visibly flinched at the name. Sirius took a step towards her, his arm outstretched like he was going to touch her. "Hermione, please-"

Hermione jerked her arm out of his reach. "Don't touch me! Don't say my name like we're friends! I could never be friends with a traitor!"

Sirius backed off at the look of pure hatred in her eyes. "Hermione, just let me explain-"

"Why? Why should I? I think I have all the explanation I need."

"You're friends with him. He's a bigger traitor than I am!" He said pointing to Severus.

Hermione saw red. She flung herself at him, knocking them both to the ground. She was straddling his torso, her small hands gripping his neck and pressing her weight down on him. Sirius' eyes popped out as he struggled for air. His big hands pushed at her shoulders before his fingers found hers and tried to peel them from his throat. Hermione pressed harder as his attempts grew weaker.

"Let him go, or your husband dies."

The statement broke through the haze of rage clouding her brain. Hermione looked behind her to see Severus magically petrified stiff. His eyes locked onto hers. Hermione looked back at Sirius who was about to pass out.

"Get off him."

Hermione looked back at Severus before she pushed off of Sirius. He gasped before coughing and spluttering. His hands rubbed his neck, bruises already forming where her hands had been.

"I did what you asked, now let him go."

"Didn't I tell you? He will be punished for everything you do."

"No! Punish me! I'm the one who did it! I'm the one who-"

"Crucio!"

Green light shot from the leader's wand and hit Severus in the chest. He fell to the ground, his back arching in pain. Hermione fell to the floor beside him. She gripped his shoulder as tears fell onto his skin. His body twisted and writhed on the hard stone, his head cracked against the floor. A pool of blood started to form slowly beneath him, his eyes rolled back. She heard the snapping of bones as his limbs twisted into unnatural positions.

"Please! Stop! Please!" Hermione was sobbing. There was nothing she could do. She was helpless.

Severus' jaw was locked so he didn't make any noise. She knew he was too proud to let them know how much pain he was in. His breathing was hard and ragged. His eyes locked onto hers. She could see the pain in them before they rolled back into his head. His body was shaking under her hands.

"Please! Stop!" she screamed at the leader behind her. "You're killing him!"

After a moment the light receded. Severus' body slumped and his head lolled to the side.

"Do something like that again, sweet, and I will kill him."

Hermione stood up and faced Sirius again. The leader walked out of the cell with one of the other men. Sirius walked over to her so he was close to her.

"You don't have to do this, Hermione. You don't have to prove yourself to anyone. Just come with me. You can trust me." His big, pale eyes pleaded with her.

Hermione was quiet for a moment. She looked over to Severus who was unconscious on the ground. If she did what they asked, he would never be hurt because of her again. He could go back to Hogwarts and… she would stay. Was she willing to give her life up for him? She thought of her parents and her family and friends. She would never see them again, and even if she did live through this, would she want to? What if she slipped and accidentally told them something? What if she was too weak and she told them on purpose? What if they killed her anyway? But wouldn't her death be worth saving him? She looked back to Sirius before spitting on his face. "I will _never_ trust you."

"You bi-" He lunged for her, but the other man grabbed him and dragged him back. The cell door shut behind them, leaving Hermione alone in the dark.

* * *

A/N: So what did you think? Please review and try to keep the flames to a minimum if at all possible, that goes for the PMs too.


	14. Chapter 14

A/N: Hello again! I hope you enjoyed the last chapter. I really enjoyed reading your reviews and PMs. Some of your theories were quite interesting. I have decided once again to change the ending of the story, so I hope you like the new ending. I may post the original ending, but it depends on what I think when I finish.

Thank you to all who have reviewed. I love hearing from you and your thoughts, they mean a lot to me.

Thank you to SnapesTwin for beta reading this chapter

Everything belongs to J.K. Rowling

I make no money from any of my writings.

* * *

**Chapter Fourteen**

Hermione's eyes drifted over Severus' body. In the light he looked much worse. He was paler than she remembered. She kneeled next to him on the ground. She remembered Madam Pomfrey teaching her to mend minor injuries without a wand almost a year ago, but it was vague. She had to try. Severus was in critical condition and now that she could see what she was doing, she had a better chance of healing him.

She raised her hands above his head and concentrated. She tried for what seemed like hours, sweat glistening on her skin from exertion. Her lip was bleeding from chewing on it. Finally she felt the magic flow from her into him. She pictured his head injury healing and the skin closing up. When she looked down, his head looked like nothing had ever happened to it. Dried blood in his hair was the only indication that something had occurred. She smiled and sat back looking over the rest of his body. There was a lot to do, but healing just the one injury had exhausted her. She gently ran her hands over his arm closest to her and felt for broken bones. She couldn't feel any, so she moved to his other arm, and healed what felt to be swelling in the middle of his forearm. She moved to his collar bone and shoulders, healing what felt out of place or wrong before moving to his ribs. His skin was hot even though he was lying on cold stone which worried her. She healed a rib that seemed to be at an odd angle and then another lower down. She moved down to his legs and healed what she could find. She hoped all the major injuries had healed properly otherwise she wasn't sure what she could do. She was most worried about his head though. If he didn't wake up soon, she was going to try to force him into consciousness. His breathing seemed even and his pulse seemed regular.

Hermione moved away from him and lay back on the mattress. She was no doctor, and she knew she was lacking in that field of knowledge. She had read as much as Hogwarts had on medicine, but field injuries weren't extensively covered. She didn't have much to work with in the cell, so what she had read on natural cures for illness didn't help her either. She worried over his high temperature. She went over everything she knew about how to bring temperatures down, but there seemed to be nothing she could do. She was stuck as much as he was. And she knew Voldemort wouldn't be willing to heal the sick.

She sighed and started going over everything she had learned about medicine again.

SS/HG

The door to the cell was flung open and Hermione was startled to her feet. She moved in front of Severus who was still unconscious on the ground. Sirius and the leader walked in and shut the door behind them.

"Have you thought any more about our offer?"

Hermione glared at them silently.

"You really are a stubborn girl, aren't you?"

Sirius snorted. "You have no idea."

"And how is the good professor doing? Or can we really call him that? He did fuck a student after all." The leader smirked, his eyes gleaming.

Hermione's jaw clenched as she fought the retort.

"You know we saw it all, sweet. You walked in the room and sat across the couch by him just waiting to be fucked by your professor. Did it get you off, your twisted fantasies finally coming true? You're really a bad girl, aren't you, sweet?" The leader walked around her and whispered in her ear.

Hermione fought the nausea his words were causing her. He was so close to her she could feel his heat on her back.

"Then he pushed you on the bed and fucked you like you had always dreamt. Do you remember how it felt? How it smelled? How it tasted? Do you remember moaning under him? How he was so disgusted with you that he couldn't even leave the fire going to see you? How he rolled off of you and turned away, leaving you alone? How he refused to speak to you for days after because he couldn't bear the thought of seeing your repulsive face?"

Tears rolled down Hermione's cheeks as he whispered in her ear.

"You're in love with a man who cannot stand you. You're a pathetic slut and you know it."

The tears flowed freely now down her cheeks leaving salty tracks behind.

"Why do you risk so much for a man who barely tolerates you, much less cares for you?"

He gently turned her around to face him. His thumb brushed away the tears from her cheeks. "We can make it go away. All the hurt you feel. All the pain he's caused. It can all go away. Just tell us what we want to know."

Hermione tensed in his grip. Her blood froze in her veins. "You were so close," she whispered.

"Excuse me?"

"You're a liar. I will never tell you what you want to know."

"How could I know so much if he hadn't told me what happened? How could I be lying?"

"Voldemort spies on people all the time." Hermione pushed away from him.

"I will get the information from you whether it comes willingly or not. I tried to be nice, but you've left me no other choice. Starting tomorrow, sweet, the real fun begins."

He and Sirius left and slammed the cell door shut.

Hermione sank to her knees and let the tears fall. Did Severus really feel that way? It all made sense now. That's why he put the fire out. That's why he turned away. That's why he didn't talk to her. He thought she was ugly and stupid and naïve. God, how could she be so stupid? He was a man. He is never going to want a silly little girl like her.

She was sobbing now. She didn't care how much noise she made. The ache in her chest grew the longer she cried. Hermione looked at his serene face through her tears. She was such a fool. He could never love someone like her.

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A/N: I know many of you thought Ron would be the traitor, but I could never do that to him. I know many of you don't like him, but I quite like his character. Anyways, what did you think? What do you think will happen now?

Please please please share your thoughts in a non-flaming sort of way! I look forward to hearing from you!


	15. Chapter 15

A/N: So I promised faster updates so here is the next chapter.

I know you will all hate me, but I hope I am forgiven at the end of the story. Please don't flame me.

I've received a few PMs and I think one review asking if this will be like a 'V for Vendetta' story, although I've never seen V for Vendetta (Its on my list of things to see), I think I have a clue as to what you mean so I thought I would address it to the public instead of replying to each and every PM. My answer is no. I've read too many stories like that and I think they're a bit predictable now. This chapter has a bit of a twist, but nothing like that. Hope this answers any questions you have.

It killed me writing this chapter, but I think it will make the rest of this story a bit more interesting. I hope you agree.

Thank you to SnapesTwin for beta reading this chapter

Everything belongs to J.K. Rowling

Please review!

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**Chapter Fifteen**

Hermione woke up to the sound of a moan. Her eyes cracked open and burned as she tried to clear the fog her brain was in. She had cried herself to sleep yesterday and now she felt like her body had ran a million miles. Her joints clicked and her body ached as she sat up and looked around. She heard another moan and her eyes flew to Severus who was lying on the ground. A thousand emotions hit her like a freight train as he stirred. She was hesitant as she crawled over to him and looked at him. His dark eyes opened and focused on her.

Hermione shied away from his gaze and sat back on the mattress, pulling the robe closely around her. "How are you feeling?"

He moaned and brought his hand to his head. "How long has it been?"

His speech was slightly slurred which worried her even more. She hoped it was just because he had just woken up and not because something was wrong with his head. "About a day and a half." She watched him struggle to sit up. She thought about helping him, but decided not to since he probably didn't want her anywhere near him. "How is your head?" she said quietly.

"Fine. Everything feels fine except for some soreness, but I expect that is from lying on the floor for days."

Hermione winced and curled against the wall as far away from him as she could get.

The look he gave her told her the move did not go unnoticed. "What's going on?"

"What do you mean?" she asked feigning ignorance.

"You're acting strange. Did something happen while I was unconscious?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Hermione lied. "Do you feel like you have a fever still?"

"I don't know, you tell me." Severus moved closer to her and she shied away from him. "What's going on, Hermione?"

"Nothing, sir."

Severus stared at her like she had five heads. "_Sir_?"

Hermione's eyes grew wide. "I meant Severus."

"No you didn't. What's going on, Hermione? You won't let me near you, you're calling me by formalities that we haven't used in a very long time, you don't want to make eye contact with me."

Had she been doing that? She glanced at his eyes then looked back to the wall opposite her.

"Why are your eyes blood shot?"

"No they're not."

His hand reached out to touch her face. His thumb brushed her cheek and she tensed under his touch. He frowned and let his hand drop. "What happened?"

"It doesn't matter. I was stupid to think it in the first place."

"Think what?"

"Nothing."

"Hermione, you're not being fair."

"Nor are you."

"What did I do? Please, sweet, tell me something."

Hermione's eyes shot to his. She wished she wasn't trapped in this cell. She wished his dark eyes weren't boring into hers. She wished she had never fallen in love with him. When did it even happen? She couldn't tell him. What if he was reading her thoughts? He was an expert legilimens. What if he was laughing at her right now? Hermione sprang to her feet. "Are you using legilimency on me?"

"What? No, of course not."

"How can I be sure?"

"Have I ever lied to you?"

"Yes, no, I don't know, have you?"

"What's happened to you, Hermione? What did they tell you?"

"So its true?"

"So what's true?"

"They told me that you told them about the first time we-"

"The first time we what?"

"We made love!" Hermione blurted out.

Severus stared at her for a moment then he started to chuckle, then it broke into laughter. "Is that what you're calling it?"

Hermione shrank back like she had been struck. "What?"

"I would hardly call it _that_. We fucked, yes, but _made love_? Don't be so naïve." Severus stood up. "You really thought I loved you? _You_ of all people? Sure it was a nice way to burn off some energy, but really now."

Tears started to roll down her cheeks. What was he saying?

"Oh, come now. Let's be adults about this. You need to learn to not get so attached. Now stop that crying and talk to me like an adult."

Hermione hugged herself as she gasped for air. How could he say this to her? Was this some kind of a sick joke?

"You really did think I loved you, didn't you?"

Severus reached out to her but she pulled away. "Don't touch me."

"Hermione, quit acting like a child. We are both adults here-"

"I trusted you."

The door to the cell opened and the usual group with Sirius walked in. "Ah, I see you've told her." The leader said walking up to Severus. He grinned at her confused look.

"I was getting to it." Severus growled.

"Told me what?" Hermione asked glaring at him through her tears.

"My friend here, Severus, has really been working for us the whole time."

Hermione's eyes widened. She looked like a deer caught in the head lights. "No."

"I'm afraid so. Isn't he a great actor? Very convincing." Severus was standing next to the leader. He was on the wrong side of the room. He usually stood next to her. What was going on? They were lying. He would never do this. Not to the Dumbledore. Not to the Order. Not to her.

Hermione was rapidly shaking her head. She backed away from them into the wall opposite the door and clung to herself. This can't be happening. This is a dream. She was going to wake up any second now and be back in Hogwarts in her bed in Gryffindor tower with Lavender snoring in the bed next to hers. She just had to wait for her alarm clock to go off and everything would be okay. She squeezed her eyes shut and blocked out everything. She couldn't take anymore. She ignored the talking in the background and waited to wake up. Anytime now she would be back with her friends, and Harry and Ron would talking about Quidditch, Ginny would be staring lovingly at Harry, Lavender would be trying to get Ron's attention, Luna and Neville would be talking about kneazles, and she would look up at the staff table and see Snape glaring down at them and Dumbledore smiling knowingly because that is how it was supposed to be. She wasn't supposed to be in love with her professor and caged in a cell and starving and wishing for death because she knew she would never be free.

Someone was calling her name. It was probably Professor McGonagall trying to regain her attention because she was daydreaming in class. She forced her eyes open to see Snape's dark eyes looking at her. His hands were on her arms like he had been shaking her. She was still in the cell, they were still laughing at her, Snape was still… wrong.

"Don't touch me!" She shrieked.

"Hermione-"

"Don't touch me!" She fought against his hold. She tried to rip free from his grasp, but he was a lot bigger and stronger than she was. "Let me go! Let me go!" she screamed.

"Hermione-"

"No! Please let me go!" She was sobbing again as she struggled against him. "Please let me go!" she sobbed. She sank to the ground. She was exhausted. Mentally and physically. She wasn't sure how much more she could take.

"Tell me what we need to know."

Hermione could only shake her head. Her body shook with her shuddering sobs. She could feel him looking at her. They all were. She curled herself into a ball and continued shaking her head. She felt him withdraw from her. He must have been crouching there for quite some time as she shook her head back and forth.

She wasn't sure how long she had been sitting there before she heard the cell door close and the everything was dark.

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A/N: So did any of you like it? Please tell me what you think in a non-flaming way! I'm eager to hear from you! Please please please review!


	16. Chapter 16

A/N: Hello everyone. I'm glad some of you liked the last chapter, and for those of you who didn't, I'm sorry it didn't live up to your expectations. Some of you compared it to other stories, which I thought wasn't really fair to this story. There are many stories that have a similar part to other stories, but that doesn't make them the same. Some of the stories that this one was compared to I hadn't read, so I'll have to look into it.

Anyways, for those of you who have chosen to continue reading this story, I hope you enjoy this chapter. I loved/ hated writing Snape as evil. I read a lot of stories where he is good all the time, and I thought I would write one a little different as a change of pace.

I'm still getting many questions on the ending, so I would advise those of you who have questions to look back to the previous chapter because I address it there. If that does not answer well enough, I would be happy to respond to any PMs.

I will also say to those of you who were unhappy with the "evil Snape" turn of events that: did I not promise you a happy ending? I only count the endings as "happy" if the main characters are together at the end *hint hint*

I will also give those of you who thought less than good things about the Sirius bit something to think about: Snape is a Potions Master for a reason, isn't he? *again, hint hint*

That is all I have to say for the moment, I hope that helps.

Thank you to SnapesTwin for beta reading most of the chapter, as I did change a little of this one.

Everything belongs to J.K. Rowling and I do not profit from any of my writing

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**Chapter Sixteen**

Hermione was staring at the cell door. Alone. She had never felt so empty, so betrayed, in her entire life. She had stared at the door since they had left. The tears had dried up some time during the night leaving her hollow. She couldn't think, couldn't breathe. She was drowning in her own misery. She wasn't sure she even wanted to think, which was a first for her. Thinking would only bring back memories of… him, and he was the last person she wanted to think about. She didn't want to move, but she couldn't feel her arse anymore. Thinking about it, she couldn't really feel anything anymore. She was completely numb.

Hermione closed her eyes. She was waiting for the alarm clock still. Any moment now.

She heard footsteps from the hall. She clenched her eyes shut. It was Ginny walking by her bed. She must have slept in by accident. That's why the alarm clock never rang. She had forgotten to set it. The door to the cell opened without its usual crash against the wall. Hermione held her breath. She heard the measured footsteps of her… professor nearing her. They stopped in front of her and she heard his knees crack as he crouched down by her. He was waiting for her. Hermione continued to pretend he couldn't see her even though she felt his eyes on her.

"Are you going to speak to me?"

Hermione kept her eyes shut. If she couldn't see him, he wasn't there.

"I brought you food, if you want some."

She ignored him.

"I know you feel hurt. And I'm sorry you feel that way, but you had to find out some time."

She heard his breathing from in front of her, but refused to acknowledge his presence.

"Why are you still on the ground? The mattress would be better suited for you."

Hermione ignored him. If she ignored him long enough, he would leave.

"Hermione, sweet. Get up."

Hermione ignored him still. She could tell he was getting angry, his breathing was getting huffier. She heard him draw near her. His hand wrapped around her bicep and he lifted her from the floor. She refused to support herself. He dragged her to the mattress and let her drop onto it. She didn't move, didn't open her eyes, didn't breathe.

He kneeled beside her and she felt magic brush over her skin as she felt him checking her for injuries. "You can't hold your breath forever, sweet."

_Watch me._ Hermione felt his hand brush over her collarbone to her neck. She felt like she was going to vomit. His touch made her want to recoil, but she stayed still. His fingers pressed into her skin on her pressure point making her gasp and fight to get away from him.

She glared at him as she panted for air. He was clean. His clothes were new and crisp. His face freshly shaven. He smelled like how she remembered him before they had been trapped for days. He looked well fed and rested.

"That's much better. I don't want my wife uncomfortable." He smirked down at her.

Hermione fought the urge to gag. How could he call her that? "How dare you!"

"She does speak!" he said in mock amazement.

"How dare you call me that?" she growled.

"You agreed to it, sweet. You signed the papers. We have been married since the day you said yes and we will continue to be married until the day you die."

Hermione grimaced. Until the day _you _die, not until the day _we _die. She was going to die alone in this cell and they both knew it.

"You know there is only one way. Your friends aren't going to save you. They have already forgotten you. It's time to give in. You have been a brave girl, and I'm sure they would be proud of you if they cared, but it's time to grow up. Do you really think your little friends ever truly cared about you? Who were you to them? Harry Potter's most valuable asset and closest friend? I think we both know they only saw you as the annoying girl that tagged around that they would pretend to be friends with so you would give them answers. They don't care for you. They use you. It's time you stop deluding yourself of the truth."

"Save your breath," she whispered.

"You know what I say is true. Why would I lie to you? I have nothing to gain or lose from your trust so why would I lie? Come now, Hermione, I thought you were a smart girl."

"Fuck you," Hermione spat.

"But you've already done that, unless you want to go again?" Snape smirked down at her glare.

She tried to communicate all the hatred she felt through her eyes to him which seemed to only amuse him more.

"Perhaps I should return when you are ready to be an adult?"

"Perhaps you should go to hell and never return?" Hermione hissed.

"Watch your tongue. You would do well to remember who you are speaking to."

"I know exactly to whom I am speaking. I am speaking to my _husband_ who seems to have forgotten who he is."

"I am the same person I have always been. I know exactly who I am and have always been. The question is, sweet, do you?"

Hermione didn't say a word. She watched him walk away and shut the cell door behind him. Did she know who he was? She knew who she thought he was, but was he lying the whole time or was he lying now? He certainly seemed to be telling the truth, but what if he had no choice? What if Voldemort was making him do this to her? It wouldn't be the first time he had controlled Snape. Hermione pushed the thoughts from her head. Whoever he was or had been, this is who he is now and there was no way she could change that.

SS/HG

Hermione was stirred from her dazed state by the door opening and a man walking in that had healed her before. She saw him put a tray on the floor with a clear phial of purple liquid on the ground. He tried to hand her a piece of paper, but when she just looked at his outstretched hand and then back up to his face, he threw it beside her and left.

Hermione stared at the phial before picking up the note and reading the familiar script of Snape.

_Take this. It is not optional. _

Hermione threw the note in a ball across her cell and thought about doing the same with the potion, but he would probably know when she did. The last thing she wanted to see again was him. She pushed the phial away to join the other tray with food on it, probably poisoned, and threw herself on the mattress. She wanted to scream and hurt him like he had hurt her. She wished she had never fell in love with him. She wished she had never married him. She wished she had never met him.

* * *

A/N: Although I do love reviews and PMs, I do not love being scorched, so please bear that in mind whist writing. Please please please review!


	17. Chapter 17

A/N: Hello everyone! So I am ecstatic to report that I did not get any flames for the last chapter! The very first in a long time, might I add. I love the reviews and I am planning to implement some of your ideas into the story line, so I would like to thank you for the inspiration! I enjoy reading what you think I will to the ending of the story, many of you believe it will be a trick, which I think is interesting. I guess you will all have to keep reading to find out. ;)

This chapter is one of the most depressing to read and write in my opinion, so be warned. But, on not necessarily the bright side, you also get a look into Snape's point of view, so I will be interested in what you think is going on with him.

I hope you enjoy the chapter and I can't wait to hear from you!

Special thanks to SnapesTwin for beta reading this depressing story

Everything belongs to J.K. Rowling

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Chapter Seventeen

Hermione etched in three more tallies bringing the total to eleven. Eleven long days. What day of the week was it? Would she normally be in school right now? What class would she be in? She sighed. She wondered what her parents are doing right now. Maybe filling a crown or taking x-rays? Doing something normal that made them happy. She would give anything to be doing something normal. She would give anything to be bored out of her mind listening to the boys argue about quidditch or reading in the library or doing homework until her eyes felt like they would pop out of her head because anything was better than sitting here doing nothing. What was she doing here? Waiting for death?

She looked around the room and saw the tray that… he had brought in yesterday. It had a glass of water and a slice of bread on it. She walked over to the tray and picked up the glass. Could she do it? Could she follow through to the end? She sat back down on the mattress and stared at the glass of water. She would never drink it in case it was laced with something; he was a potions master after all. She stared at the water before smashing the glass into the stone wall. The glass flew in a million directions with the water. Hermione dropped what was left of the glass in her hand and looked around for the biggest piece. She found a shard about the size of her palm and picked it up. She stared at its sharp edges and how they glimmered in the dim light of her cell. Could she do it? She had never even thought of it before now. Why would she need to? She had loving parents and caring friends or so she thought. No. He was lying to her. He's a liar. They did care for her.

Tears stung her eyes and she brought the sharp point to bend in her left arm. She had to do it. There was no other way. She could either die on their terms or her own and she would be damned if she gave them this. They had already taken away so much. They would not have this. She pressed the point into her skin until she saw beads of blood well up then dragged the point down her arm to her wrist. She reveled in the sting and the burn as the point cut through her soft skin. She watched the blood well up from the cut until it leaked down her arm in rivulets.

Hermione started to panic. There was so much blood. It pooled on the mattress and covered her arm in its slick heat. She was crying now. Did she do the right thing? Was this what she really wanted? Her head started to get heavy so she slowly lowered herself onto her back. She held her arm out to the side so it didn't touch her as she bled out. She wished she would have gotten to see her family and friends one more time. She stared at the ceiling. She had been right when she had thought this cell would be the last thing she ever saw. Black spots formed in her eyes blocking out the stone ceiling. Then everything was dark.

SS/HG

Snape's eyes flowed from one side of the page to the next as he read in silence. He hadn't been able to read for quite some time now, being busy with other things. He took a calming breath that was rudely disrupted by his door being flung open.

A young, blond boy stood in the door, probably a distant cousin of Draco. He was panting like he had run here. "Master Snape, the prisoner has committed suicide."

Snape threw his book to the side and stood in a fluid motion. He brushed past the teen and started stalking to the dungeons. His footsteps echoed on the stone of the cells as he briskly made his way further and further down until he was outside her cell. He un-warded it and flung the door open, rushing to her side. He saw her pale body lying lifeless on the mattress. He bent down and forced a blood replenishing potion down her throat. His hands pressed against her arm as he shouted at a guard to get him bandaging.

Her eyes were staring blankly at the ceiling, dull and brown without the spark he had known for years now. Her lips were blue and her skin was cold on him as he held her to his chest. The guard gave him a roll of bandage and Snape quickly rolled it around her arm tightly.

Snape held her for what seemed like hours to the guard watching him from the hall. He kneeled on the stone like a slave to the girl. The guard tentatively approached him and set a chair down in the corner of the room. "Maybe a chair would be better suited for you, Master Snape?"

Snape didn't look at him. The guard continued to stare at his back until Snape took a deep breath and laid the girl on the mattress then stood, turning to face the guard. The guard bowed and left the cell. Snape looked at the chair and slowly made his way to it before sitting down to wait for her to wake.

SS/HG

Hermione opened her eyes to dim light coming from somewhere in front of her. Was she dead? She blinked to clear her vision and saw stone. Was this heaven? She had never been a believer but she couldn't think of why else she was seeing something. No, didn't her grandmother tell her suicide was sin? Was this hell? She looked around and saw _him_ sitting in a corner staring at her. This was definitely hell. Why did he have to follow her everywhere she went? Could she not rest in peace?

"Did you honestly think you could escape by doing that?"

Hermione tried to move but found she couldn't. She was paralyzed. She started to struggle, but it was useless. She was breathing faster the more she panicked. She was hyperventilating now. Her huge amber eyes met his dark ones.

"Breathe you stupid girl."

Hermione tried to calm herself down, but she was beyond that now.

Snape walked over to her outstretched body and she started to panic even more. His wand pointed to her throat and he muttered something. Air rushed into her lungs and she was once again breathing normally.

She mouthed something, but her throat was scratchy.

"You are not dead you silly girl. The guard found you and we healed your arm before you bled out which brings us back to the original question: did you really think you could escape that easily? Did you really think I would let you die when you haven't given us what we want? You are a foolish girl."

Hermione glared at him.

"You will remain paralyzed until the potion wears off and your arm heals completely. Goodnight, sweet." Snape got up from the chair in the corner of the room and hauled it with him. He handed it to a guard who was standing beside her door. "Tell me if she decides to do anything else rash before I return."

"Yes, sir." The guard nodded and sat in the chair beside her door.

Snape shut the cell door leaving her in complete darkness again.

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A/N: Alright so what did you think? Please please please review! Hearing from you all is what keeps me writing!


	18. Chapter 18

A/N: So because of all the reviews I got in such a short amount of time, I decided to post this chapter relatively quickly. I hope you enjoy this one, its far less depressing than the last. I would like to remind you all that it will have a happy ending. It won't always be like this, I promise. I'm really excited about the ending of this story and I hope you enjoy it when I get there. I know I will enjoy reading what you think!

I am working on the sequel which is taking me a while since I'm quite busy right now, but I'm having knee surgery next week and I will be out for two weeks after that, so I'm hoping that I will get the majority of it done then. So, no worries, it will get done... eventually.

I hope you enjoy this chapter and review! If you have any questions I'd be happy to answer them, so don't hesitate to send me a PM!

Special thanks to Snapes Twin for reviewing the majority of this chapter

Everything belongs to J.K. Rowling and I do not profit from my writing

* * *

Chapter Eighteen

Hermione lay still on the mattress. She had been looking at the same spot on the stone ceiling for hours. All she could think about was Snape. She didn't want to say his name in her head, it brought memories back that she would prefer not to remember. How could he betray her like this? How could he lie so effortlessly to her without even a second thought about what she was feeling? She knew he was a cold person, but no one was unfeeling. Not even Voldemort himself. Why hadn't she been brought to see him yet? Wasn't he the one who wanted the information? She may be Harry's friend, but he didn't tell her everything, she knew that without a doubt. She really couldn't be that useful to him. Memories of her earlier conversation with Snape came to the forefront of her mind. No. She couldn't think of what that slimy bastard said. She was Harry's friend. He did care for her. He hasn't forgotten her. _But what if he has?_ _No, he couldn't have, could he?_ _You will never be as important to him as Ron is. You will always be second best. No. I don't need self-doubt to plague my thoughts when Snape is already doing a wonderful job at it. _

Hermione couldn't stop herself. Tears were welling up and they refused to be pushed back down. They rolled down her cheeks and splashed onto the itchy wool of her robe. The robe she was forced to wear. The robe that marked her as a prisoner. _Their_ prisoner. They had won. They had broken her to the point of suicide and they even controlled that. She was a pawn, a slave, to them and she knew it. At some point they were going to become tired of her and kill her. She was here only because they wanted her here. Not because she had survived to this point. She was completely helpless. She looked at the marks on the wall next to her mattress. That person was killed as well. Assigned to the same fate as she was.

There was no fighting back, no resistance. There was only the wait.

SS/HG

Snape came through the cell door quietly shutting it behind him. He looked her over as she pretended to be asleep on the floor. Hermione tried to keep her breathing even so he would assume she was asleep and leave. She willed him to go away and never return.

"I know you are not asleep, but even if you were I would not just leave. And I will return every day until you agree to stop this silly fight and give in."

Hermione sat up. "You were reading my mind," she stated angrily.

"You really should have learned occlumency. You're like an open book."

Hermione glared at him. "Then why don't you just take the information from me?"

"I want you to give in willingly. If that does not work, then I will."

"You're going to get the information either way what does it matter to you how you get it in the end? Aren't Slytherins known for their 'the end justifies the means' approach to everything?"

"Why won't you just give it willingly?"

"Because I will never betray them like that. I have something worth fighting for and I intend to do everything in my power to keep it that way. What do you have?"

Snape's face became a statuesque example of blankness. After a moment of just staring at her with his expressionless face, he turned on his heel and left, slamming the door behind him.

SS/HG

Snape returned later that day while Hermione was actually asleep. He bent down beside her and looked over her body curled up in the fetal position on the mattress. He uncorked the phial in his hand and turned her shoulder so she was lying on her back. Her sleepy eyes started to open and her mouth started to form the question that was reflected on her face before Snape pushed the phial to her lips and tilted it back.

Hermione's eyes grew as she choked and spluttered. "What are you doing?" She rasped.

"Voldemort needs certain potions made and I do not have the time to find things to test them on because of you, so you're going to test them for me."

Hermione glared at him. "And what, pray tell, was _that_ supposed to do?"

"We'll find out, won't we?"

Snape left the little cell in a flourish of robes leaving her alone.

SS/HG

Hermione was burning. She had moved to the stone floor hours ago, but nothing was helping. She clenched her eyes shut and tried to think of something else, anything else, besides the horrible need that was driving her to insanity.

She clenched her legs together and curled her hands into fists. Please, make it stop.

Hermione inwardly groaned as she heard the door open and willed it to be her imagination. She heard the familiar footsteps drawing closer to her and tried to slow her breathing. She heard him crouch down next to her and could smell his intoxicating scent.

His hand touched her forehead and she couldn't hold back her strangled whimper. "You're burning up." He murmured.

Hermione grimaced at the low tones of his voice.

"How do you feel?"

Hermione wanted to say a witty retort, but couldn't come up with one. "Make it stop." She nearly groaned.

"Make what stop?"

Hermione wanted to beat him with a bat. "You bloody well know what!"

"You're going to have to be more specific. I need to know everything you're feeling so I can document it for the Dark Lord."

Hermione couldn't believe what he was saying, but if telling him would make it stop, then she would. "I'm hot," She said.

Snape made an agreeing noise, "Anything else?"

"I feel…"

"You feel what?"

"Need. All I can feel is need."

"For what, Hermione?"

Hermione opened her eyes and met his dark orbs. "You." Hermione closed her eyes again. "Please, make it stop."

Snape's hand smoothed her hair back and he pressed a phial to her lips. She drank it down relishing in its sweet taste. "I'm sorry, sweet. I can't do that."

Hermione's eyes flew open to his. She could already feel the potion taking affect. She felt sick. She scrambled to get away from him, but he caught her wrists and forced her back to the ground.

"Breathe through it, Hermione."

Hermione's eyes rolled back and her body started to shake before she went into a full on seizure on the floor. Her head knocked against the stone as her body seized uncontrollably. Snape held her head to keep it from cracking against the stone.

SS/HG

Hermione woke up and felt something warm and soft against her face. She snuggled closer to it before her eyes snapped open and she realized what she was feeling. Snape's robes were an inch from her face as she looked up to see his eyes watching her. She pulled violently from him and dragged herself up into a sitting position.

"How are you feeling?"

Hermione glared at him. "Take a wild guess."

Snape gave her his own glare before grabbing her tiny, boney wrist and taking her pulse. His big hand ran across her forehead and Hermione glared at him the entire time, looking like a petulant child. "You seem to have recovered."

"From what? The potion or the overdose?" Hermione wanted to yell at him.

Snape looked up at her, "The potion." He growled.

Hermione sat in silence just staring at him and he doing the same. Where did they go from here? She still had lingering feelings of lust for him, whether from the potion or from something she didn't want to admit, she didn't know. She knew it was stupid to feel anything for him other than blind rage, but she couldn't shake the last bit of care she had for him.

"Please, just tell me what he wants to know. It would be so much better for you."

"I will never tell you. It may be easier, but it will never be better."

Snape sighed before standing and leaving her alone. When would he just give up? She was never going to tell them anything.

* * *

A/N: So what did you think? Please review!

Thank you to all who have PM'd me and reviewed, I appreciate all of them!


	19. Chapter 19

A/N: Hello everyone! I loved hearing from you all last chapter. It's interesting to see how many of you are optimists out there and are holding out for Snape. I'm interested to see what you think of this chapter. Nothing horribly gory is written, however it is implied, so you have been warned. Oh, and I almost forgot to mention that your favorite Malfoy makes an appearance in this chapter. Not for very long, but I know how much some of you wanted to see him again.

I have surgery tomorrow morning so it would be really great if I woke up to reviews! *wink wink hint hint* :D

Thanks to SnapesTwin for beta reading the majority of this chapter

Everything belongs to J.K. Rowling

* * *

Chapter Nineteen

Snape was staring down at her. She had been lying on the mattress for hours. She hadn't slept in days and her body ached. Her head was swimming from the blood loss how many days ago? Two? She was staring off into the distance, ignoring his annoying presence above her. He leaned down and pulled her eyelid back. He moved his finger back and forth trying to get her eyes to track it. He let her eyelid go and she blinked. She heard him sigh before moving back to the tray and placing it beside her mattress.

"I have been told you refuse to eat or sleep or speak," his low voice murmured.

Hermione continued staring at the ceiling.

Snape picked up the glass and held it to her mouth. "You have to drink this."

Hermione kept her mouth shut.

Snape noticed her breathing changed. He forced her jaw open, but she fought to keep her lips pressed firmly together. "You cannot starve yourself."

Hermione kept her mouth tightly closed.

"Are you going to tell me what we need to know?"

Hermione was silent. Her gaze stayed trained on the spot on the ceiling.

Snape sighed and she felt his hands on her ribs through the wool of her robe. Her breathing was off when he touched her. His eyebrow rose as her looked at her. "My touch makes you uncomfortable?"

Hermione ignored him again.

His hands slipped under her robe. His icy cold fingers brushed against the soft skin of her torso then gripped her hard. She sucked in a breath and he pulled her up so she was sitting in front of him. "You're still attracted to me, aren't you, Hermione?" He purred her name.

Hermione glared at him and clenched her jaw. "Aren't wives supposed to be attracted to their husbands?" she growled out.

Snape looked like he wasn't sure what to say. Hermione looked at his deep brown eyes and noticed something looked… different. They didn't look right. He blinked and looked at her, "You want me after everything I've done to you?"

"There is a difference between attraction and want."

"How very true," he said. "Are you going to eat?"

"Are you going to let me go?"

Snape sighed. He looked at her for a moment before leaning close to her and kissing her. His mouth tasted like mint as he pushed his tongue into her mouth. Hermione made a muffled noise of protest and pushed on his chest. He leaned his weight on top of her pushing her back into the mattress. Hermione squirmed under his weight which made him press harder into her. She was trapped under him. Was he going to rape her? She felt his hands slide up to her neck and felt his fingers close around it. His lips left hers and he pressed his weight onto his arms. He was choking her. She clawed at his hands and kicked at him but he pressed harder into her. Her slender neck strained against his big hands as he pressed her into the mattress. She ripped at his fingers, clawing and digging her nails into his hands.

"I may not be able to make you eat, sweet, but I _will_ make you sleep."

Hermione's eyes widened. Did he mean permanently? She struggled even more for air and kicked uselessly at him. He was in between her legs making him almost impossible to kick. She pushed at his shoulders and clawed long marks into his neck. Her vision was blacking out. How could he?

"Just let go, Hermione."

The hell she was going to give in! Her eyes locked into his dark ones. There was something in them that she hadn't noticed before. Was that regret? Guilt? She saw the odd thing she had noticed earlier return in his gaze as his face hardened as he pushed her harder into the mattress. Why was he doing this? She fought against him until the blackness took over and she went limp under him.

SS/HG

Hermione woke up on hard stone. She hadn't remembered falling asleep on the floor of her cell. She opened her eyes and saw high, elevated ceilings of white and black marble. This was not her cell. Her first instinct was to sit up, but since she was no longer in her cell, it was probably safer to continue to pretend to be asleep than to announce consciousness. She slowly turned her head and opened her eyes enough to make out her surroundings without blatantly opening them. There was a crowd of Death Eaters surrounding her in a circle talking and laughing amongst each other. Hermione repressed a shiver as she heard the all-too-familiar footsteps of Snape coming towards her along with someone else's. The two pairs of feet stopped by her head and one turned her face so she would be looking at the ceiling had her eyes been open.

"We know you're awake, mudblood. You can stop the act."

Hermione debated whether Snape was telling the truth, but took too long as yet another potion was forced into her. She clawed at his hand as he rubbed her neck forcing it down. "What did you do to me?"

Lucius, who Hermione just noticed was the other pair of feet, smirked down at her. "You have been a very bad prisoner, Granger."

"Didn't you hear? It's Snape now." She said.

"Ah, yes. I nearly forgot that little… misfortune." Lucius said in a disgusted tone. "And I didn't even remember a wedding present. Pity."

Snape glared down at her. "What are you going to do first, Lucius?"

"Why don't I let the groom be the first? Call it my late gift to you."

"I've never known you to be generous, Lucius."

"Yes, well, there is a first time for everything, is there not?"

Snape gave him a curt nod before looking back at Hermione. His eyes looked almost tinted but Hermione became distracted from his eyes by his long, elegant fingers wrapped around a dark wand pointing to her face.

SS/HG

Hermione wasn't sure how long she had been staring at the wall across her in her cell. She had been battling her thoughts for the majority of the day, trying to repress the images of what they had done to her. She grimaced at the memory of the rats before pushing it to the back of her mind. Everything they had done to her brought her within an inch of her life, and then, when she had accepted her death, they would heal her and start again. Each time they came up with a more creative way to kill her; rapping, beating, dropping her from the ceiling again and again, drowning, she was sure they would run out of ideas until Voldemort had summoned them from her and she had been dragged back to her cell.

She wasn't sure she was physically able to cry anymore. Eventually she had run out of tears and had given in. They had questioned her tirelessly.

_ "Where is Potter?" _

_ "What is he looking for?" _

_ "Has he found what he was looking for?" _

_ "How many followers does Dumbledore have?" _

_ "When are they planning to attack?" _

Each question was met with silence which only angered them more. Snape had been the worst. Not in the ways he had questioned her, but because it was him. He had used personal details of her life against her, embarrassing her in a way she had never experienced. It scared her how well he knew her.

* * *

A/N: Remember to tell me what you thought! You have no idea how much your reviews mean to me! Please please review!


	20. Chapter 20

A/N: Hello everyone! So in this chapter there is a bit more action as Sirius takes revenge and an important story line is brought in. I hope you find it! **WARNING: **rape and foul language are very prominent in this chapter, so if you don't like that, skip.

Thank you to all the reviews! I am amazed at how many I received and how nice they were! Thank you thank you thank you!

Thank you to SnapesTwin who edited the majority of this chapter

Everything belongs to J.K. Rowling

* * *

Chapter Twenty

Hermione was dragged out of her sleeping bliss by a painful kick to her side. Then another. And another. She rolled away from it but it followed her. She moaned and pressed herself into the wall trying to get away from it.

"Wake up you filthy mudblood!" There was another kick to her side and her eyes flew open.

Another kick was delivered to her side as she struggled to sit up causing her to fall to the mattress again.

Hermione looked up at her assailant. It was the leader surrounded by the guard and… Sirius?

"Crucio!"

Hermione felt the familiar blinding pain wrack her body. Why did they _always_ go for the Cruciatus? She locked her jaw against the screams that were rising from her lungs and pressing against her for release. She would not give them the satisfaction of seeing how unbearable their ministrations were.

When it stopped she panted for air. She was shaking and covered in sweat. She wasn't sure how long it had lasted, but it was long enough to make her beg for death.

Was this it? Was this the end? It seemed almost anti-climactic considering all the worry she had put into her imprisonment to be killed by two idiots and… Sirius? She still wasn't sure what had gotten into him and was a little sorry she would never find out.

She dragged her eyes back to Sirius. "Why?" She resented her voice for shaking, but she couldn't help it. Her whole body was shaking uncontrollably.

"You tried to kill me."

"No. Why?"

He looked at her emotionless. Like she didn't matter to him at all. His pale eyes were completely blank. She did a double take when she looked at his eyes. The whites were murky and blue, not the usual clear white. She pushed the thought from her mind, she had more pressing matters at hand. "Power."

Hermione was shocked. That's it? That is all it took to get him to give in? Power? "But James? And Lily? And Harry? How could you be so loyal then just…"

"The light is going to lose. There is no question about it. I already spent the majority of my life in Azkaban. I don't want to go back. They said that I would be welcomed like a hero, which I have been. My family has accepted me agian. How could I turn my back on my family forever? Would you do the same?"

Hermione couldn't believe what she was hearing. "James loved you like a brother. He was better family than anyone you were blood related to. Harry loves and trusts you. Have you told him yet?"

"No. I haven't. He wouldn't understand."

"How could he? You have been the closest thing he had to a father, and you're betraying him!"

"If he would just listen to sense I wouldn't be betraying him! He will never listen to me."

"And he shouldn't. You've lost it, Sirius. You're betraying everyone who loves you so you can go on a power trip? If this is all it takes to get you to switch sides, I'm glad you're not on ours."

Sirius' face remained blank.

"Have you been Imperiused?"

Sirius frowned at her. "Of course not!"

"This isn't you, Sirius. If you go back to Dumbledore now I'm sure he'll be happy to have you back."

"I'm not going back, Hermione. What can I do to change your mind?"

"Nothing. I'm not barking mad like you are."

"You've been hanging around Ron too much." He smiled a little before his face became impassive again. "Please don't make me do this, Hermione. Just come to the right side. I can promise you it is better than anything you are struggling to fight for."

"My family? My friends? The millions of people who will die for Voldemort's amusement?"

All three men recoiled and hissed. "Do not speak his name."

"I will never lower myself to your level," Hermione spat at him ignoring their hisses.

Sirius raised his wand.

"A wand, Sirius? Doesn't that seem a little impersonal considering what we've been through together?"

"Would you like me to make it more personal?" Sirius lunged at her and ripped her robe open. His hands groped her roughly as she tried to force him off of her. The leader grabbed her hands and pinned them above her head and the guard pinned her feet out. "Is this personal enough, Hermione?"

Hermione wanted to scream and fight, but she was pinned to the mattress. Her throat seemed to close up on her making any noise painful and raspy. She struggled against the men holding her down, but that made them hold her more firmly in place. She finally managed a scream only to have her mouth covered by the leader's dirty hand. Sirius cast some spell before thrusting into her. She screamed out in pain. It had never hurt this bad before. Not even when she had been raped in front of all the Death Eaters over and over again. What had he done to her? She screamed under the palm and fought harder. Every thrust was agonizing on so many levels. He was laughing above her as he thrust again and again into her. It felt more like a knife thrusting into her instead of him. Tears streamed down her face as she struggled.

Snape watched impassively from the door. He looked on as his wife writhed under the dog. He folded his arms across his chest and watched as she screamed and clawed at him. "Enjoying yourselves?"

Sirius jumped off of her and the other men flew away from her like her skin had electrocuted them.

Hermione curled into a shaking ball on the mattress and stared blankly at the floor.

"Did I say you could come in here?"

There were several murmurs of no.

"Did I tell you to do this?"

More murmurs.

"If I catch you down here again I will report this to the Dark Lord."

"We were just having a bit of fun-"

"Did I say you could 'have a bit of fun'?"

More murmurs.

"Leave. Now." His icy whisper reminded her of her professor. Something she never wanted to be reminded of ever again.

She vaguely registered them leaving then a sigh coming from by the door.

"Hermione-"

"Don't speak," she whispered. Her voice was hoarse from the screaming.

Hermione looked back to him standing beside her mattress looking down at her. She knew she looked pathetic, but she was having a hard time caring. His dark eyes locked onto hers and she noticed a murky blue color beside the deep brown. It flickered to white and his face contorted for a moment before turning murky again and his face becoming impassive.

He opened his mouth to say something, but she cut him off, "I said don't speak," she said.

Snape was silent. He stood there for a long time just staring at her curled up in the fetal position. "Would you please just come to our side?" He sounded exhausted.

"I will never come to your side," she whispered.

* * *

A/N: How was it? For those of you who try to avoid any torture in your stories, I believe this is the last of it. Did any of you get the hidden clue? I think it will be glaringly obvious as the story progresses for those of you who didn't find it.

Please please please review!


	21. Chapter 21

A/N: Here's the big chapter! I hope you all enjoy it! You absolutely _must _tell me what you think! I can't wait to hear from you! There will be one more chapter after this one then a gift from me to you after that.

I hope you enjoy and review!

Thanks to SnapesTwin for beta reading everything that I didn't change before posting!

Everything belongs to J.K. Rowling

* * *

Chapter Twenty-One

Hermione didn't dare fall asleep even if she could. It felt different today. She had been tortured many times and lived through them every time, but today felt different somehow. She didn't like it. The air seemed calm like it didn't dare move. The cell's quietness seemed suffocating. She sat up and looked around. Everything seemed the same as before. Maybe it was just her overactive imagination.

She heard footsteps coming quickly to her cell. Why was someone in a hurry? This frightened her more than she would have cared to admit. Her heart was racing along with the footsteps. The door to her cell burst open and Snape crashed through.

"What's going on?" Hermione squeaked.

"The Dark Lord grows impatient. Hermione, you must listen to me. Are you listening?"

Hermione nodded her head.

"You have to give me the information now. You have to quit playing games."

"_I'm_ playing games? _You're_ the one playing games!'

"Do you want to die?" His dark eyes nailed her to the ground daring her to defy them. "I promise you it will not be quick and painless. You will be tortured until the Dark Lord grows bored and only then will you be allowed to die. Is that what you want?"

"N-no, but I will not, cannot, do what you ask of me."

"Hermione, you've been brave. Now it's time to be smart."

"I am being smart." Hermione stood up. "Do you think I would go through all of this," she gesticulated around the room then at him, "for the fun of it?"

"No, you're being foolish. There's still a chance of living. Just say yes and all of this will go away."

Hermione stared into his dark eyes. "No."

They stared into each other's eyes like it was a test of will before Snape turned and shut the door.

Hermione let out a breath she didn't know she had been holding. This was it. This was really it. This was going to be her last day on Earth. She fell to her knees. They cracked on the floor but she ignored the pain. She was going to die. It felt so real now. How could this be happening? Hermione took a deep breath trying to calm herself. She was never going to see her family again. Never see her friends again. Never finish school. Never fall in love with someone who wasn't actually going to kill her. Never live to the end of the war. Never see her friends married with children, and without the pressures of war constantly upon them. Never tell her parents she loved them one more time.

Her throat started closing up on her. Whether from panic or from tears or both she wasn't sure. She had made it fifteen days and now she was going to die. This was the end. She had never been so scared.

SS/HG

Hermione sat curled up on her mattress looking around her cell. She catalogued every stain from her blood. She remembered how the largest in the middle of the floor was from her. One of the first days she was here. She ran her hand over the large stain on her mattress. Several days ago when she had cut herself it had seemed so simple then. So right. Now death was imminent and she was so afraid she could hardly breathe. She looked at the marks on the wall above her mattress. She understood why they got shakier near the end. Whoever it was had probably been tortured and scared like she was. She walked over to the door and made her final tallies in it. Those would be the last marks she ever made in the door. The last day she would ever live. She ran her hands over the small marks and tears came to her eyes.

Hermione was startled out of her reverie by the door to her cell smashing against the wall next to it. The leader strode in with two gaurds and found her on her mattress. He pulled on her matted, bushy hair and dragged her up so she was standing. Hermione gasped in pain, and clawed at his hand as he pulled on her hair then threw her into the hallway outside her door. The two other guards grabbed each of her arms by her biceps and started to pull her down the hallway through doors into other hallways until they were met with a large metal door. Hermione was lead into a tiled room with drains in the floor and shower heads jutting from the walls.

Hermione backed away until she ran into the leader's chest and was pushed forcefully into the middle of the room. Hermione clung to her robe like it was her only lifeline until one of the guards pried it off of her and threw it into the corner. She fruitlessly tried to cover herself as the leader flicked his wand and water started to pour from the shower heads and soak her. Hermione stood there as the water pelted her back with a broken look on her face causing the guards and their leader to laugh.

The leader walked over to her and took a bar of soap from the tray on the far wall and started to slowly run it over her skin. Hermione forced down the bile that rose from her throat and stared at the wall in front of her.

"You should thank the Dark Lord for being merciful enough to let you wash the filth from you, mudblood." He whispered in her ear.

Hermione continued to stare dejectedly at the wall as he whispered insults in her ear and his hands slid over her body until he slammed her into the wall. Hermione watched as the water ran down the drain with streaks of red tainting it. The leader laughed and backed away, leaving her to pick herself up from the floor and finish washing the soap from her hair. She stepped out of the spray and was given her robe back then lead back to her cell.

SS/HG

The door opened slowly revealing Snape. He walked in just as slow and looked at her. She watched him cross the room then stop in front of her. His dark eyes bored into her own, but she kept her grave gaze on him as he did on her.

"I can't tell you how foolish you're being."

"I know."

"I strongly disagree with your decision."

"I know."

"I've done everything I possibly can to try to change your mind, but you refuse to listen to reason."

"I know."

Snape looked at her. His voice was quiet. She had noticed his eyes were not the murky blue color from before today, "Is there nothing I can do?"

"Hold me."

Snape looked utterly flummoxed. "Do you realize who I am?"

"I do."

"Do you remember what I've done to you?"

"I do."

"Can you say more than two word sentences?"

"Probably not." Her voice broke into tears.

Snape sat next to her propped up by the wall and pulled her onto his lap. She buried her face into his shoulder and sobbed. She shook in his arms as he clung tightly to her. Tears stained his robes but he didn't care. He smoothed her hair down and held her tightly for hours as she cried.

SS/HG

Hermione woke up to the bang of the door against the cell wall. She watched as the guards, headed by the leader from before, walked in. They were looking around the room, but never at her.

"Where is she?" The leader said rounding on his followers.

_What the hell? I'm right here._ Hermione watched as they looked around her cell like they had gone blind. She raised her hand in front of her face only to see through it to the wall beyond her hand. _What the fuck? _Hermione waved her hand around before coming to the realization she was invisible.

"We don't know, sir."

"What do you mean, you don't know? What did you do with her?"

"She was here earlier when we checked on her."

"God damn it! Someone alert Snape! The prisoner has escaped!" Two of the guards ran out of the cell leaving the leader alone. He paced slowly around the room before stopping in front of her and sniffing. He stood there looking right at her and breathing her scent in with an odd look on his face. Hermione held her breath until he turned and left.

She waited until she knew he was down the hall before dashing out the door. She ran up the stairs and down several hallways then stopped in front of an intricately carved wooden door. She took a deep breath before opening it enough so she could slide past and found herself in the same white and black marbled room. Snape and Lucius were talking on the far end of it. She walked as quietly as she possible could through the crowds of Death Eaters to Snape. She could see her wand sticking out of his robes and slowly pulled it from him. She felt him move as it slipped from his robes, but he didn't turn or say anything.

Hermione rose to her tip-toes to whisper in his ear, "Thank you, Severus." Before running from the room quietly though the giant Malfoy Manor and out into the rain, setting off wards as she ran. She could hear the muffled screams of Death Eaters following her being drowned out by the pouring rain. She was running as fast as she possibly could, her lungs were burning as she ran through wards. Her hair stuck to her face and dripped water into her eyes, but she kept her dead speed. She could hear them gaining on her and she pushed the hysteria down. She couldn't scream and give herself away. Her invisibility was starting to wear off and soon they would be able to see her clearly. She gripped her wand tightly as she saw the giant gate entrance that marked the last ward of the huge mansion. She quickly looked behind her and saw a huge group of death eaters following only meters behind her. She closed her eyes and plowed through the last ward. The moment she was through the ward illusioned to look like a huge iron gate, she disapperated, leaving her captors behind.

* * *

A/N: So what do you think? Did any of you guess the ending correctly? I hope you enjoyed! Please please please review!


	22. Chapter 22

A/N: I'm sorry I haven't posted in a while. I've looked over this chapter about a million times to make sure it was exactly what I wanted. I hope you enjoy it, I know I did!

Thank you to SnapesTwin for beta reading the majority of this chapter

Thank you to all who have taken time out of their lives to review and PM, what you have said means the world to me

Everything is J.K. Rowling's

* * *

Chapter Twenty-Two

Hermione didn't know where she was or how she got there, but she would recognize those voices anywhere. She hid behind a large tree and cast a glamour over her body to make herself look nourished and less skeleton-esque before quietly walking through the trees to see Harry and Ron in a clearing about to put up wards. When she started to walk towards them a twig cracked under her foot causing them to spin to her, wands pointed at her chest.

"Hermione?' Ron asked.

Hermione raised her hands in surrender and looked back and forth from Ron to Harry. "Hey."

They rushed at her and before she knew what was happening, she was enveloped in a bone crushing hug. "Where have you been?"

"We've been worried sick!"

"Snape said you were captured!"

"Everyone's been trying to get you back."

Hermione didn't want to, but she pried the boys off of her and smiled at them through tears she didn't think were possible. "I'm fine. I'm just really glad to be… where are we?"

Ron and Harry looked around. "We'll tell you when we have the wards up. You mind helping us? You're way better at spells than we are."

Hermione smiled and pulled out her wand then started to cast charms with Harry and Ron.

Harry looked at her oddly as she put up the last of the wards. "What's wrong with your eyes?"

Hermione raised her hand to her eye and looked at him, "What do you mean?"

"They looked… clouded. Like a corpse for a moment." He said coming towards her and looking at her brown eyes.

Hermione felt her heart drop. Sirius' and Snape's eyes had looked the same way. Now that she thought of it, the leader's eyes had looked like that too. Dead. "I don't know. Must be from the lack of light."

SS/HG

Hermione sat in a tent with Ron and Harry later that evening and looked at them from across the table. "What happened?"

Harry looked at Ron before looking back at her. "Remember the night Dumbledore and I came back with the locket and the ring?" Hermione nodded. "Dumbledore told me there are seven horcruxes and we had already destroyed the journal. We need to find the rest and destroy them."

"Yes, we've already been over this."

"Well, we decided that we needed to find the horcruxes more than learn how to turn a book into a bed, so we left."

"Just like that? What did Mr. and Mrs. Weasley say?"

Ron's ears turned pink. "I wrote them a letter."

"You did what? Ronald Weasley, your parents are probably worried sick!"

"I know, but this is more important, like Harry said. Even you have to admit that."

"I may agree that there are more pressing matters than school at the moment, but-"

"Whoa, Harry, did you just hear that?"

"Wait, could you repeat that?"

"Oh, do shut up! As I was saying, you didn't really tell them in the best way."

Harry and Ron laughed until their faces turned red and, eventually, Hermione found herself giggling along with them.

After a while Harry gave her a sober look. "Where did you go, Hermione?"

Hermione, worried she had turned invisible, stuck her hand out to examine it. "Can't you see me?"

"What? Yes. I meant where were you? You just suddenly disappeared."

Hermione looked away, not meeting his eyes. "Snape took me to Voldemort."

"What happened?"

"I'd rather not talk about it." Hermione said still not looking them in the eyes.

Harry and Ron looked at each other, "Would you tell us how you escaped?"

Hermione looked back at them, "Severus freed me."

The boys looked at each other with twin looks of doubt before deciding to let her rest before they questioned her sanity. They plastered fake smiles on their faces and stood, "Well first thing's first: you need food."

Hermione gave them a half smile as they started to pull her from her seat and walk her to the kitchen. Harry whispered in her ear, "Did you glamour your eyes?"

Hermione nodded slightly, "Ron doesn't need to worry. I'm sure it will go away."

"Hermione, you look like death. You're skinny, I could feel it when we hugged you, and you're eyes… he going to worry either way."

Hermione looked down at herself. She had noticed when she had changed into some of Harry's clothes that they hung off of her more than they should have. She had to magically shrink them in order for his belt to cinch small enough for her hips. Her knees looked bigger than her thighs and her ribs stuck out. Her skin looked like a decorative drape for her bones. She had done her best to cover her malnourished body, but her lack of weight showed in her face as well.

Hermione pushed her weight from her mind and smiled as she went to Ron and started to help with the preparation of the food. She had to hold herself back from devouring everything she saw.

Later when the boys went to bed, Hermione crawled into her own bed and stretched on the luxurious softness of the sheets and pillows. She stared at the red and gold canopy above her head and thought over her last days and she knew that Snape had laced the second potion with something and when she had turned invisible she was sure he had done it to free her. Then when she saw him with her wand carelessly sticking out from his robes she knew without a doubt that he had freed her. Had the whole thing been an act? She wasn't sure. Did he actually care for her? She had no idea. He could have been acting since the marriage or since her capture, but what she did know was that he had saved her. She wished she could go back to school to talk to him, but she would be putting both him and herself in danger by doing so, so she would stay in hiding with Harry and Ron and maybe one day they see each other again. He was still her husband, after all.

SS/HG

May

Hermione ran into the shrieking shack, up the stairs, and into the room she knew he would be in. She saw his pale form lying in a pool of blood which was slowly seeping into the cracks of the old wooden floor. She kneeled next to him and pictured his neck healing as she pointed her wand at the gaping wound. The dark veins surrounding the wound grew as the poison rushed through his body. She started to pull the poison from the wound and held a phial to his neck and collected the venom. She passed her wand over the wound and watched as his skin slowly pulled back together and the bleeding stop. She pulled a phial of blood restorative from her pocket and forced the contents inside down his throat. She rubbed his neck making him swallow the potion all the way. Hermione pushed the memories of him doing the same to her from her mind and held his wrist to measure his heart rate. The slow beats started to grow faster until he opened his eyes and she was met with his familiar brown- almost black- eyes.

His mouth formed words, but his throat was still horribly damaged rendering him, literally, speechless.

"A life for a life. My debt has been paid."

Hermione moved to stand, but a strong hand caught her wrist and held her back, pulling her to him. Hermione looked at him as his mouth formed the words "I'm sorry."

Hermione gave him a sad little smile, "I am too, Severus."

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A/N: What did you think of the ending? Is it what you expected? I hope you've enjoyed this story as much as I have. Look for the sequel soon!

kennedy8226


	23. Chapter 23

A/N: Here is my gift to you all, I hope you enjoy. I'm about nine chapters in, so the first chapter should be posted soon. I plan to insert a link at the bottom of this page to the sequel when I post it.

Thank you to SnapesTwin for being an amazing beta

Everything belongs to J.K. Rowling

Enjoy!

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Preview to the Sequel

Hermione walked along the barren road. It was the end of the summer and she was running out of time. She walked slowly, even though it was stiflingly hot. Her home was just around the corner and she knew she had to return to it even though she really wanted to circle the block again.

Hermione walked up to the door and unlocked it before letting herself in. She rounded the corner of her small home and stopped in the doorway and leaned against the casing. She watched the boy who was reading on the couch. His dark hair was shaggy as it had not being cut in a long time, but was still short enough to pass the dress code at school. He put a marker in his book and looked up at her.

Hermione was assaulted with brown eyes that looked so dark they could have been black if you weren't looking close enough. "Hello, mother, how was work today?"

Hermione gave him a small smile before dropping her bag. "It was fine. Nothing out of the usual. How's your book going?"

"Nearly finished," he said, glancing down at it.

"You just started it this morning."

"It's very good."

"What would you like for dinner?"

"Whatever," he said, looking at his book again.

Hermione knew he really wanted to read. He was just like her. Just like… She pushed the thought from her mind and walked into the run down kitchen. She picked up the phone and dialed the number she had found herself calling more than she would have liked the past summer.

She let the phone ring then heard the same voice that always answered. "Ministry of Magic Department of Magical Education, this is Brenda. How may I help you?"

"This is Arianna Parker. Have you heard back from Beauxbatons about my son?"

"Your son is named what again?"

"Serbius Parker."

"I'm sorry, Miss. Parker, but each school has certain regions it carries to and the United States is in Hogwarts' region. Unless you have a legitimate reason for not wanting your child to go to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, he must attend school there."

"There is no possible way he could go to another school?"

"No, Miss Parker."

Hermione looked down at the counter. That had been her last chance to change schools for him. "Thank you, Brenda."

"Have a magical day," she said in a cheery voice.

Hermione rolled her eyes at the stupid departing that the Department of Magical Education was forced to say. She would have to bring him to Kings Cross next week. School began next Wednesday and he couldn't _not_ go to school because of her fear. She sighed and turned around to see Serbius standing in the kitchen watching her.

"Why don't you want me to go there, mum?"

"There are people there that have been searching for me for eleven years now, and I don't want them to ever find me. You mustn't ever tell them your real last name or my real name, do you understand me? It is very important they never find me. Okay?"

He nodded.

Hermione smiled. "How does Mac and Cheese sound?"

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A/N: Do you like my set up to the next story? What do you think will happen? Please tell me all your theories and comments!

This is the sequel! Hope you enjoy! s/9494169/1/Not-Broken-Just-Bent


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